The Second Time
by SummerSnitch
Summary: What if the Quarter Quell was different? Primrose Everdeen was reaped for the second time and Katniss can't take her place now... Will somebody come to her rescue or will she suffer in the arena? Ladies and Gentlemen, Let the 75th Hunger Games begin!
1. The Volunteer

**Author's Notes: Hello my fellow Hunger Games Fans! This is my first story and I will really appreciate a review from you. This will be a long chapter because I really need to just let it out, you know?**

**I'm sorry if it didn't live up to your expectations but guess what? I don't care… just read. :D It won't be like Catching Fire or Mockingjay because you would be reading the Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins not my fanfiction. :) **

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THE HUNGER GAMES UNLESS ANGRY NARGLES RULE THE EARTH BUT NARGLES AREN'T THAT MEAN. :3**

**Chapter 1**

"**The Volunteer"**

_**Katniss**_

Why does the bed have to be so comfortable? I never want to wake up ever again. I want to stay under the covers. Blocking me from the eyes that barely care about me.

Who am I talking about? The Capitol of course. But I know that I _can't _just stay here and lie down in bed. I have to mentor for the very first time…. Today is the Reaping.

I'm taken back and I remember last year. The year where Peeta – Who is barely talking to me – and I won the 74th Hunger Games.

That was Prim's first Reaping. When she was reaped it felt like the whole world would stop and explode at that very moment. I remember the feeling I got when her name was called. I remember the 6 word sentence that changed my life forever:

_I volunteer, I volunteer as tribute!_

Now, I have to worry again because Prim is now 13 and her name will be put in twice. Twice! I will have to worry 2x more for her! If the odds weren't in her favor last year, what more for this year? Her. Name. Is. Put. In. Twice.

And this year, she has no one to volunteer for her to take her place.

I still can't shake the feeling of nervousness that courses through my body. To make matters worse, it's the Quarter Quell. The theme just fuels my fire of worry for my little sister again.

_:FLASHBACK!:_

"_Since we all know it is the 3__rd__ Quarter Quell this year, we will be choosing the theme for it to show you that you are totally under our control." Announces President Snow. Typical arrogance. _

_He takes out an envelope from a medium-sized box. He opens the envelope and walks over to the podium again. My heart starts pounding against my chest and I'm just hoping it's not something that involves the victors. Like, past victors will be reaped and I know I'll be screwed._

"_Their unlucky number shows how unlucky you all are on trying to overpower the Capitol." The hell is he talking about? "Because of that, only 13 year olds will be reaped. Did you really think that your children will be children forever?"_

_:END OF FLASHBACK!:_

Because of that, who cares about two times the worry? I am worrying 100 000 times more than last year because Prim just happened to be 13 this year. The year of the Quarter Quell. The year where it is more gruesome than regular Games. I think I might die of nervousness.

I check the clock and find out that I have been lying here and sulking for an hour. Great. Now I have only 1 and a half hours left until the Reaping. And I still have to go and talk to Peeta.

Ever since we came back to District 12, Peeta has been ignoring me completely. Occasionally giving a nod or a "Good Morning Katniss" but that's it.

He only talks to me if we're with Haymitch and believe me, we don't visit him too often. The smell of alcohol, the appearance of the place and the fact that Haymitch holds a knife in his sleep sort of kept us at a distance from him.

But I need to apologize now. His face when I told him about only doing it for the cameras… still haunts me in my sleep. I don't want that anymore.

We need to at least get along so we can mentor the tributes correctly. Our first year in Mentoring and I'm extremely scared that I will not bring home a tribute.

Well, Haymitch only managed to bring home 2 tributes. He failed to keep 46 tributes alive. He was obviously drunk on half the kids he mentored.

"You need to get up Katniss." I order myself like I did back in the arena. Ironically enough, I did it at the time when I needed to find Peeta. And now, I need to find him and apologize. It will be extremely hard for me since I usually don't apologize to people and I don't know how.

I get up and order myself to take a bath and brush my teeth since my stomach feels like it will neglect any type of food I will put into it for the next 4 and a half hours.

I change into a red plaid dress that I asked Cinna to make for me and put my hair into two braids instead of one. I put on simple black flats ad look in the mirror.

If I'm going to apologize to Peeta Mellark, I might as well have him remember the first time he…er… fell in love with me. Maybe it will loosen him up a bit and he won't have that stony feeling in his eyes when he looks at me. This idea calms me down a bit.

My mother and Prim are probably in the tea room. Good. I don't want to look at Prim before the Reaping when I know that she's in more danger than everyone else.

I take one last look in the mirror and head out of the house. Across the street. And I end up in front of Peeta's house in lesser time than I expected.

I knock on the door almost a bit too loudly and wait on the front porch. Saying sorry to him is so much more nerve-wracking than thanking him for the bread. And that was already difficult enough.

My ears probably got the hearing of a bat because I can practically hear his loud footsteps going down the stairs.

I take a few deep breaths before he opens the door. Today, he is a wearing a red polo shirt and black pants. His shirt is not buttoned all the way to the top so his undershirt is revealed a little.

His hair is ruffled a little bit and some of his ashy blond hair falls in waves over his cerulean eyes. Which are the same whether in the mud, in the cave or just here in plain old District 12.

"Hey Katniss." He says without a trace of expression. Come on! Don't make it harder than it already is Peeta!

"Hello Peeta. Can I come in? I need to tell you something." So far, so good Katniss. Now all you need to do is say sorry. Sigh.

He steps aside with his poker-face still on. I suddenly noticed that I miss his smile. His perfect set of white teeth flashing toward my direction. It makes me feel guiltier than ever. Not seeing his cheeky little boyish grin.

I go in and sit on his couch. He follows suit and sits beside me. "So… What did you want to tell me?" he asks facing me. I still see the pain he feels when he looks at me. Then I see his eyes move from my face to my hair to my dress.

I see the corner of his mouth move up slightly and I know that he remembers that day. Even if I don't.

"Peeta…" Come on Katniss! Just say it! "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you feel so bad. I… I didn't…I want to…" then I falter. That's the best I've got? He's going to kick me out of his house for sure. This is what I meant when I said that I didn't know how to say sorry.

His eyes turn from that cold expression into something I think is sympathy. "Katniss," I look up into his eyes again and he smiles. He smiled! I feel all warm inside again. But his was a sad smile.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have taken it too far. I shouldn't have ignored you. I guess I was confused on how you feel about me." I can see a lone tear fall out of his eye as he drops his head in shame.

Shame? He shouldn't be ashamed. I'm supposed to be ashamed! Damn it Peeta, why do you have to make me feel so guilty?

I reach my hand to his face and wipe his tear with my thumb. He looks up and he smiles. Wow, I miss that smile so much. You have no idea how much I do.

"Katniss… I know that the Capitol will never leave us alone with this but I can't go around District 12 fake dating you. When you obviously don't feel the same way. I think we should be friends. Not that we shouldn't continue our "affair" so the Capitol will be out of our hair _**(A/N Hey that rhymes!) **_it's just that… I don't want you to feel uncomfortable."

Wow… With this statement, it just shows how much Peeta cares for me. His words give an impact to my steadily beating heart.

_I don't want you to feel uncomfortable. _Ironically, this makes me uncomfortable. I don't know why. I mean, I love Peeta, I do but… Do I love him in _that_ way? I'm just as confused as he is on my feelings for him.

"Friends. I can do that." I tell him. Well, starting off as friends can steady my mind on our relationship.

"Good. Isn't it funny how I've known you for months and I still don't know your favorite color?" he says poking my stomach lightly which makes me giggle. Giggle? I don't giggle. Prim giggles, not me. I think Peeta is the only one who can manage to make me giggle.

"It's green. Like the forest. Yours?" I think we're on a good start. "Orange, like the sunset."

I nod my head and try to remember the sunset. "You know when the sunset has those little touches of pink? That's what makes it so beautiful." He sighs. I smile and think that the sunset is amazingly beautiful with that slight touch of pink here and there.

He looks over at the clock and sees that there is 30 minutes until the Reaping starts.

"We should get going. We don't want to be late. Do you still want to see Prim?" he asks. Yes. I do but I can't stand knowing that the odds are never in her favor so I shake my head.

"I already did. Let's go." Well, that was a lie but I really just want everything to be over with. He opens the door for me and we head for the town square.

When we get there, I could already spot Prim in a cluster of 13 year olds in the girl's section. Peeta pats my shoulder and gives me a reassuring smile. "She'll be fine." I wish I could believe him…

After the Speech that Effie gives, that is the same every year, she announces the moment I'm most dreading.

"Now let us pick our lucky tributes! Ladies First!" she plunges her porcelain hand into the Girl's Globe and I suddenly find myself holding Peeta's hand. He doesn't seem to mind since he gives my hand a squeeze for comfort.

Effie grabs a slip after making 6 counter clockwise stirs and a clockwise stir. She jogs over to the mic and opens the slip.

"Primrose Everdeen!"

YOU HAVEGOT TO BE KIDDING ME! Now, she has no sister to take her place. She walks to the stage for the second time and I barely hear the scream from the back of the crowd of 13 year old girls.

"NO PRIM!" I hear the voice loud and clear now. It sounds familiar. I watch as a girl whose hair is in a braid down her back pushes Prim behind her. "I volunteer! I volunteer as tribute!"

I look at the girl in shock for a few minutes as some Peacekeepers usher a screaming Prim from the girl. She has long dark hair and green eyes. Green eyes? Nobody from District 12 has green eyes. I don't understand why she volunteered for Prim.

The girl climbs up the stage and says that her name was "Aquila Flamsteed"

_Aquila Flamsteed! _How could I have forgotten who she was! The dark hair, the eyes, the volunteering for my sister… It made sense now! "Peeta," I whisper.

He looks at me with concern and says "What is it Katniss?" "I know who she is. She's…" Peeta raises an eyebrow and puts up a finger so we can hear he boy tribute's name.

"Pollux Scott!"

"Okay, what is it?" he asks me.

I take a deep breath and swallow a few times. Little did I know, I was hyperventilating. I didn't notice that Aquila and Poluxshok hands already and were heading to the Justice building. That snapped me out of my trance.

"Peeta… Aquila is Prim's best friend."

~End of Chapter 1~

**If you would like, please review :) I's okay if you don't I'm not forcing you to. Hope you enjoyed it!**


	2. Bring Her Home

**Author's Notes: I FREAKIN' LOVE ALL OF YOU! When I opened my email I found 10 story alerts! You are so awesome. I know it is just 10 but I'm just starting and I am not normal XD**

**I was so excited that at least 5 people like my story that I updated now! Who knows? Maybe I will have 100 hundred story alerts in the future? Let's try and get to that! As I promised: CHAPTER 2 OF MY FANFICTION!**

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THE HUNGER GAMES unless Josh Hutcherson bursts into my room and loudly announces that he's my godfather. I'm allowed to dream right? **

**Chapter 2**

"**Bring Her Home"**

"_Peeta… Aquila is Prim's best friend." _

I never knew how deep their friendship really was until this day. As I watch Aquila and Pollux get ushered to the Justice Building, I am vaguely aware of Peeta holding my hand tighter.

I don't mind but this gesture just reminds me of Aquila and Prim when they watch the Games at our house. Actually, it reminds me of their everyday life as 'BFFs" as Prim tells me.

Aquila and Prim have been friends since they were 5. Prim told me they met at Reading Class (Which is her favorite) and they just hit it off easily.

Well, it's not a surprise for Prim. She's nice to everyone. But Aquila… I never knew how much she is like my little sister. Other than her hair, facial features and eyes, she's exactly like Prim. Warm and Kind-hearted. She can see the good in even the worst bully in school.

Heck, she's even a hunter like me. The only thing other than her appearance that is different from Prim.

But what I don't understand is _why_ she is like that. Why does she go around the Seam practically skipping and saying hi to everyone she meets? Why does she still have that can-do attitude? She even made some town friends and that never occurs.

I ask the question 'Why' is because she has no family. Sure she has the Everdeens but a _real _family. Her parents and her little brother, Andrew, were murdered by the Capitol.

The whole story was that she took her family out hunting when Andrew was just 4 years old. They do that all the time but they leave Andrew in the house. She suggested that he learned as early as then because she did.

She taught him some basic snares which he was a natural at. She went on and hunted until a little later in the afternoon. She was just about to see her family for a small picnic when she heard a loud rumbling sound.

She was about to start running when a dart hit her neck and she blacked out completely. The last time she saw light was in the Capitol hovercraft she heard.

I didn't remember too much details because when she got to that part where Andrew was decapitated, she was practically bawling like crazy. All I heard was some gibberish when she talked about her parent's deaths.

I heard something like "invisible" and "gallows" and her father telling a Capitol man something. I didn't ask for any more after that because she started to roll on the floor with Prim crouching down trying to comfort her.

I know how she feels, losing someone you love. But she's different. The Capitol did this and the remembrance just makes me hate them even more.

She blames herself for everything. No matter how many times we tell her it's the Capitol's fault, she shakes her head and says the Capitol should not take blame for what she obviously did. She's a bit too selfless.

I am snapped back into reality when Peeta taps my shoulder lightly.

"Katniss, we need to get on the train. You've been sitting here for half an hour. I was waiting for you." God Peeta, why do you always have to remind me how in love you are with me?

I nod and whisper "okay." And allow him to almost drag me to the train station. My legs are moving but my mind is elsewhere and for the very first time, it's not about my family's safety. It's about Aquila's safety.

I've been considering this while I was in my own little world. _Who should I bring home?_ I know perfectly well who I should bring home but then my thoughts go to my male tribute.

I don't know Pollux. I never did. And now he is going to be thrown into an arena with a bunch of other 13 year olds. Waiting to die. Waiting to be killed the minute he steps off the plate after the gong.

Although, I took a good look at Pollux and he was tall and strong looking for a 13 year old. He might actually have a chance and that thought makes me uncomfortable. I don't know why.

When Peeta and I board the train I head straight for my room. I need to clear my head. Who should I bring home? Pollux or Aquila?

I want Aquila because she made my sister so happy and I want to keep people like her close. Anybody who brightens up my sister's day is a friend in my book.

Pollux… He has that warm tinge in his face. His eyes seem to always sparkle with optimism. I would hate myself if I even consider wanting to hurt him. He seems like a nice and innocent boy and he reminds me of Peeta with his blond hair and blue eyes.

But… all thoughts aside. I have no idea why I'm thinking like this but… Right now, I will say thank you to Aquila for volunteering to take Prim's place. Wow… I'm really going crazy for this. Apparently, she went crazy for risking her life to save Prim's.

Well… That's what I did but THAT WAS DIFFERENT!

I open the door and set off down the corridor to find Aquila's room. It doesn't take long because I hear a few sniffles. A girl's cry. I lean my ear nearer to the door. Yup. That is definitely Aquila. How many times have I heard her cry?

I knock on the door because it's the polite thing to do, right? I hear her mumble "come in" and I open the door slowly.

She's a mess. Her smooth skirt is now ruffled like heck. Her blouse is tear-stained. Her hair… Damn it her braided hair… Is in the biggest wreck I've ever seen.

She's hideous, I have to admit. She's usually breathtakingly beautiful for her age which makes her look about 15(Except for her height)… But now… She looks no older than 9 years old. Curled up in a little lumpy ball. I feel so sorry for her.

"Aquila…" I say lightly using the same tone I do with Prim. She looks up at me and I swallow slightly. Puffy red eyes and a strained smile. Sigh. Thanking her is harder than I assumed. I thought thanking Peeta was nerve-wracking but to Aquila, I'm practically speechless,

I move over and sit on her bed. I give her a sad smile and open my arms. She doesn't hesitate to go in them. I feel her tears coming out of her emerald eyes and fall onto my dress. Her body is shaking. There is only one thing on her mind:

_Prim._

"Aquila, Thank You." She looks up and stares at me with those ivy orbs. Curious. Very Curious. "For what?" she asks. Her voice cracks a bit too.

"For taking Prim's place. I was ready to scream when Prim got called again. You truly care for her don't you?" she nods.

"I wanted to take her place last year too. But you beat me to it. At least she will be alive. I'd rather die than watch my best friend get killed on TV." Her voice is surprisingly calm. Judging by the amount of tissues and tissue boxes, I can tell that she was crying for a long time. Keeping her voice steady after crying like hell is really something.

"You really are a special kid. You might have a chance in the arena." I tell her in an attempt to cheer her up. It did for a little bit. That's all that matters. I stand up and smile at her. She actually does have a chance in the arena.

She can hunt, she can heal and she's smart. That's a combination that you don't often get in the Hunger Games.

"Go and take a bath and be ready for Dinner in an hour." I kiss her forehead. She smiles a sweet little smile before I close her door.

I go back to my room with a determined goal in my mind. I take a bath and put on a green shirt with simple jeans. I lie don on my bed and concentrate hard on Aquila's statement.

_I'd rather die than watch my best friend get killed…_

I know what I must do. Peeta will probably need an explanation unto why but I just know. I barely knew him and I don't think I will ever know…

I have to bring Aquila home. That's that. I must bring her home.

~End of Chapter 2~

**Thanks for reading and feel free to review :D Sorry that it's shorter than the first but I'm writing it at 12 midnight -_- ~SummerSnitch flys away!**


	3. Promises Made Through The Stars

**Author's Notes: What's up my fellow Hunger Games Fans? **

**Anyway… back to the real deal here. I've had serious writer's block and I had to remember the chapter over here. Why? The rain came here and BAM! My notebook was near the window and everything got wet :( I had to restart it again but since I posted the first 2 Chapters already I just had to remember the 3****rd**** chapter which is pretty easy since this is the Before Opening Ceremony Chapter :DD**

**I think you'll all be very pleased by this Chapter. If you do I will give you cookies. If you add a review there I would ask Peeta to bake a "You're Totally Awesome" Cake for you XD If you don't… you receive…nothing… as simple as that :)**

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THE HUNGER GAMES unless Will Smith takes me to an underground city filled with fairies, magic and smiley faces. (As you can see, that is highly unlikely…)**

**Chapter 3**

"**Promises Made Through The Stars"**

_**Aquila… **_

I woke up today with an extreme headache. It was probably from all the crying I had last night. What was I thinking about again when I was crying? Oh yeah…

_:FLASHBACK!:_

_As the Peacekeepers guided – more like pushed – me to the Justice Building, there was only one thing on my mind. Why did I do it?_

_Well, I wouldn't say that the answer was easy. When has it been easy? The more accommodating question would be, Why not? I mean, shouldn't I protect the only family I have left? Shouldn't I be the one to die than watch the only person left in my life who I know I care about get killed? I rest my case._

_Prim has done many things for me. It's time I pay her back. I know what you're thinking. With your own life? Well, there really isn't anything else I could give her that is equal to how much she gave me. My life seems like the only thing that can help me stop owing her._

_And I love Prim like a best friend should but… I HATE owing people. No exceptions for my best friend. Owing people is not my thing. _

_The Peacekeepers slightly shove me into a room with velvet couches, wooden shelves and desks, and a glass chandelier. They can afford to decorate this whole room but they refuse to feed a whole poor side of one District? Selfish. All of them are completely selfish._

"_You have one hour to say goodbye to your friends and family. After the time limit is up, we will take you directly to the train station. No overtimes." Says a tall Peacekeeper who I know goes by the name 'Thor'._

_I've read about that demi-god with the hammer. He is nothing like that guy, I assure you. He's tall but he's about as skinny as any other guy in the Seam._

'_Thor' leaves the room and about 5 seconds later Prim bursts in with tears in her eyes. It pains me to see her like this because the last time I saw someone who was crying crazily like that was Andrew….He got decapitated. _

_Nice memory isn't it? Especially since you just voted yourself a seat in the chair of death. _

_She wraps her arms immediately around me and I am in danger of crying. NO! Don't cry! It will make you look weak. You are not weak. You are not weak…_

"_Why? Why did you have to do it? You know what, don't answer that! Just promise me something!" she almost yells when she lets go and holds my hands._

"_Anything Prim. You're my best friend." I tell her trying to hold my tears back._

"_Promise me you'll come home." _

_Me? Come home? I…well… I don't know… I have a 10/90 percent chance that I will win. I'm 13 for Peeta's sake! __**(A/N: I replaced Pete with Peeta because it is a thousand year old saying right? I just tweaked it up a bit to fit the time they're in) **_

_The youngest one to win the Hunger Games was Finnick Odair at 14 years old. He was already a career so the odds were ENTIRELY in his favor. When he was sent a trident, everybody knew they were screwed. He was from District 4 and he's been piercing fish with tridents for half of his life. _

"_I know what you're thinking. But you're not Finnick Odair." Woah….. She does know what I'm thinking. Do we have some Best friend telepathy or something?_

"_Yes, you may be extremely beautiful for your age." Is she really saying these things?_

"_But that's the only thing you have in common with Finnick! You can hunt like Katniss. You can heal like me and my mom. And you are smart and good with words like Peeta! You can win!" she says._

_She's trying to convince herself that I will win. When in reality, I'll probably have a spear through my head in the first 5 seconds when the gong rings out._

_But I can't really say that will be true. She's right. Maybe I _could _win this thing. Maybe I should listen to the people at the Hob more often when they say the exact same things Prim just said. I guess I'm too modest to admit it until now. _

_I need to have a steady mind and an optimistic view on things. Prim just reminded me that right now. _

"_You're right Prim! Maybe I can win!" I tell her seeing her face brighten up. _

_She hugs me once again before a Peacekeeper comes in and says time is up for her. "That's all I needed to hear. Win this thing Aquila. I'm counting on you." She smiles and leaves the room with the Peacekeper._

_Can't I just go to the train already? She's my only family. I want to release the tears that are building up inside of me. Prim… she really believe that I could win… I think I could win. Maybe. I don't know. _

_When Thor came and ushered me out of the Justice Buliding and into a car to the train station, I am still trying to convince myself that I could win. Although it is highly unlikely, I WILL win. For Prim_

_:END OF FLASHBACK!:_

I don't know how that could make me bawl elephant tears once I got in my room. Then I think of Prim. She's been like a sister to me. I promised her I would come home. Not in exact words but I'm convinced that we have Best Friend Telepathy. She could read my mind.

I go into the bathroom and take a quick shower. I change into a light blue shirt and khaki pants. If I want to show people that I wasn't crying might as well use bright colors! That's what my mom used to tell me.

I put my hair in a high ponytail and some strands fall to my eyes. Damn my layered hair.

I look in the mirror and sigh. I see green eyes, dark hair and pink lips… I'm not beautiful. What are people on about? Geez, I look… like a regular girl. Nope not beautiful. Pretty but not beautiful.

Effie knocks quite loudly on my door and tells me it is dinner time. I follow her to the dining room and I don't even acknowledge the beautiful decorations. It reminds me of the stupid selfishness of the Capitol.

Pollux, Peeta and Katniss come out a minute later. I smile at Katniss who smiles back and takes a seat next to me.

"How are you feeling?" she asks

"Never better!" I chirp almost sounding like Prim after a good reading class.

She raises her eyebrows but just shrugs it off. The bright colors are working apparently! If my mom was alive I would tell her this theory has been proven correct. I smile at her and start eating my crab and corn soup….

**(One Night Later… :A/N: Read it like the narrarator in Spongebob XD:) **

That was surprisingly a goodnight's sleep. The last time I slept like that was when I was 7.

I pick up my clothes from the floor for I just found a nightgown in the closet. Then I just threw these clothes on the floor. I should really stop that habit by now.

It's weird how I didn't get nightmares at all since we watched the recap of the Reapings last night. The careers were big and strong as usual. Some tributes were slightly above average. The others were smaller than me or Prim. And I'm a bit small for my age. They looked like they were 8.

It was unmistakably the same old, same old stuff…. I thought this was supposed to be a different sort of year? Maybe they have a new Head Gamemaker. Wait… they do…

Maybe the Arena would be different. Like the 2nd Quarter Quell! Probably more deadly and tougher to survive in. Or maybe it will just be a regular forest and then when the time comes, killer monkeys will come and gauge your eyes unless you run for it… That's just my imagination running wild.

I walk into the dining room with Peeta dipping bits of rolls into his hot chocolate. Katniss and Pollux must be really sleepy. Probably having nightmares. I feel so sorry that I wasn't suffering like they are. They don't deserve this torture that the Capitol has given them.

"Good Morning Peeta." I say sitting next to him. I don't want to be alone on one side of the table. It's awkward…

"Morning." He replies smiling a perfect set of white teeth. "Ready to see the Capitol today?" Stay positive Aquila. Stay Positive.

"Yes. What will happen first when I get there?" I ask using that same tone of innocence Prim uses on Katniss. It works every time.

He smiles again like he's looking at his own daughter. "You will be put in the hands of your stylist. But, the prep team will clean you up a bit. Believe me, you will not like it." He says rubbing his neck.

I open my mouth to protest when he says "But don't resist. Whatever they do to you DO NOT resist. They don't take a liking to whiners." I really don't want people like them to like me but I don't tell Peeta that.

"Fine. Whatever it takes to get more sponsors." I say drinking some hot chocolate. He laughs.

"That's just the first step to getting sponsors, Aquila. The second step is the training but I won't tell you how to handle that until tomorrow." He winks at me and drinks the rest of his hot chocolate.

Just the first step? It's going to be a long, long, LONG week…

**( At the Remake Center)**

I don't know what Peeta is talking about! This feels like Paradise! OH WHO AM I KIDDING! I've been scrubbed, waxed, bedecked, arrayed, and many other things I couldn't even dream of! The things these Capitol people do for beauty!

"And… DONE! You look beautiful darling!" squeals some lady named Vidlori who has green hair and a purple body.

"Not that you weren't beautiful before…" said a man named Cordelik. He has hair that changes color every 5 minutes.

"We just made you better!" said a plump woman name Losisa. Her eyes are some sort of neon yellow which makes her look like a cat. Well, she even has cat ears, whiskers and a tail.

.Now. Although, I can't say that I hate my prep team. They are so stupid yet somehow kinder than I expected. Even if they kept me locked up in a weird translucent glass chamber, I still like them.

"Maybe we should call Pictor!" said Cordelik. "YES! YES! Let's call Pictor! He would LOVE to meet this girl!" trills Vidlori. Losisa hands me my robe and tells me to wait until Pictor arrives.

Pictor seems to be the most normal name I've heard yet. But then, nobody in Panem is normal technically. My parents named me after a series of dead balls of gas(constellation). How normal is that?

"Aquila. Eagle." I jerk and turn around. I'm facing a man with fiery red hair and bright blue eyes. His face is pretty ordinary after the aftershock of the hair.

"Yes. That's my name. Your name is Pictor isn't it?" I ask sounding as innocent as possible. He smiles and nods. He sits beside me and takes my hand. "Yes. I am Pictor. Your stylist. Guess what I will be doing for the Opening Ceremonies for you?"

I raise my eyebrows and try to relay to him that _I have no freaking idea what the hell you're talking about. _

"There has been a slight rule change in the costume theme for the Ceremony. Instead of trying to reflect what the District does, we're going to reflect _you_ in your costume. Do you get it?" Nope. I don't. I'm already wearing the costume so why would I reflect myself in it?

He senses that I don't get it and sighs. I like him already. He knows what I'm thinking and he won't have to ask so many questions. Saves breath and time.

"Your name. It comes from a constellation. Symbolism of an Eagle." He says smiling. Wait… Oh… Now I get it.

"You're going to put me in like a bird costume or something?" I ask hoping it's not.

"That's stupid. No. Think of it this way, where do you usually find stars?" said Pictor

"In the sky." I'm suddenly confused again.

He smiles again and nods. "That's right. Where do eagles fly?"

"The sky. Where are we going with this?" I ask again getting confused again. He shakes his head and points up.

"What do you want to reach as a goal recently?" he asks. "To win the Hunger Games so I can go home again." I say automatically. It wasn't a hard question.

"Mhhmm… There is an old saying for people who want to reach their goals… Can you guess what it is?" he asks almost bouncing in anticipation.

There are a lot of sayings… Dram big… Never give up… Oh… The answer was right inside of me. In my name. I get it now. I truly get it!

"Reach for the sky and capture the stars." I answer quietly but surely. My dad would say this to me when we went out hunting.

"That's correct. Now, do you have an idea what you will be? If Katniss was the girl on fire… Then who are you?" he asks slowly so I get the question.

But I know the Answer. It's so simple. Yet extraordinary. "I am Aquila Flamsteed. The Girl of the Stars." His smile was all that it took to confirm my answer… I think I'll like this costume…

~End of Chapter 3~

**Hope you liked it :) Review if you want :D ~SummerSnitch flys away!**


	4. Reach For The Stars

**Author's Notes: Heyooooo my tributes! I'm sooooooooooooo very sorry that I kept you guys waiting :( I had to go to a survival class. I felt like I really was in the Hunger Games :D I will give you a long chapter because I kept you waiting for so long. 3000 words! I've only gone until 2500… Hope you will forgive me for the delay…**

**I will be holding a contest too! There will be no prize… Or will there? Info at the end of the chapter :D **

**Thank you to booksandblades for allowing me to use the names that I see in her fanfictions :) (I hope you're reading this :DD)**

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THE HUNGER GAMES unless I become part of a tribe called Hakalakamunta and they elect me their leader.**

**Chapter 4**

"**Reach for the Stars"**

_**Aquila…**_

I was wrong. I don't like this costume… I LOVE IT! I mean, Cinna's fire related outfits for Katniss were brilliant. But Pictor? He has a whole different species of brilliance.

Instead of an all black unitard, he put me in something he calls a 'Galaxy Dress'. His own design of a galaxy dress is so wonderful, elegant, gorgeous, bewitching, breathtaking, magnificent, gratifying... I could go on with this list of praising for this dress. I do this all the time with beautiful things that come my way but I'm actually going to WEAR this ambrosial thing.

It's a dress that ends in ruffles in about 2 inches from my knees. Sort of like a toned down ballerina tutu hundreds of years ago. He hired some wizard from the outskirts of Panem to charm my dress. It twinkles like the night sky.

But that's not the end of it. Every 2 minutes, a comet would fly across in random areas of my dress. It also has long sleeves that end in a point in between my two middle fingers.

He got me black leather boots that end just below my knees. This gives me a hint on what he wants me to portray. 'Sweet and innocent' because I am obviously one of the smallest in the group of tributes this year. There are other Tributes that are smaller but they look more 13-ish than me. Mrs. Everdeen always says that Prim and I look like 7 year olds.

Pictor applies a light touch of midnight blue eyeliner. He also adds a small pinkish glow to my cheeks making me look more innocent than ever. I mean, don't young children have rosy cheeks? That's what I have now.

"I don't want to put too much make-up on you. I want them to recognize my little Girl of the Sky." He giggles when he straightens my collar. He added the collar to make me look a bit superior but I am never the superior type. I just do whatever people tell me to do.

He blow-dries my hair and fixes it. When he finishes, it looks a bit like this: One small braid nearer to my right ear, one nearer to my left and one on top of my head. He ties the braids together in the middle of my head. He curls the rest of my dark hair and sends it cascading down my back.

He has me look into the mirror and I fight the urge to drop my jaw in amazement. Pictor has outdone himself. I look – beautiful. He finally convinced me that I am beautiful. And this dress just improves it!

Pictor is truly amazing.

"You look lovely my eagle." He sighs. Well, for the first time in my life, I will agree to this constant compliment.

"Thank you." I say plainly. He hugs me lightly and takes me to the elevator which will take us to the bottom of the remake center. That is where they keep the tributes until they roll out in Chariots.

When we reach our destination Pictor whispers in my ear "Why don't you skip and hum to yourself like a little girl would. Melt people's hearts." He's already giving me advice! Thank you Pictor!

I nod. I put on my sweetest smile and skip over to the District 12 chariots humming "A Mountain Air"

_**Caddock… (District 2 male tribute)**_

I see that little girl again. This time she's… skipping? She may be the same age as me but I can easily squish her like a bug. She looks so innocent and peaceful even if she will be put into an arena where she will most probably die.

She's humming a little song to herself and my heart melts when I see her skipping past me. I don't want to kill this girl. I don't want to win anymore. I would kill anybody but her. She's just too small and sweet. I can't bring myself to do it.

I may be dressed like a warrior man but on the inside, I'm…soft. I don't want this little girl to die and I will intend on that. But I don't tell my District partner, Amalie, or she will go bonkers.

Amalie means 'to strive' so it obviously means that she will do ANYTHING to win. She is the oldest in a family of 6 children and she reminds me of a controlling bitch (Sorry for the language). She's like my mother.

She catches me looking at Aquila with cold eyes and slaps me on the face. It's not that hard but it's powerful enough to snap me out of my thoughts.

"What are you thinking? You want to save that little girl?" she asks with venom tingling every syllable.

"She's the same age as us, Amalie." I say back to her coolly. The way she talks about people like that annoys me.

"Well, whatever! She would've passed as a 7 year old! You know what it means if you want her to win? You have to kill everybody else including yourself. Do you want that?" she says in a hiss that reminds me all too well of a snake about to catch its prey.

"No." Yes. I just don't tell her that. Even if it means taking my own life. Aquila will HAVE to be the victor.

"Good. Now get on the chariot." She orders me and I follow obediently. I tricked her into thinking that I'll join the group of Careers when instead; I'll probably kill her and join an alliance with Aquila so that she could win.

Yes, I'm determined. I think when my stylist puts on my helmet. Aquila has to win. I know, my life is on the line but family devotion can melt my heart any day. She's the perfect example of family devotion at a young age.

_Aquila… _I think as she is being lifted onto the chariot for she is so small _you're going to win. Count on it_

_**Aquila…**_

I pass the District 2 chariot. At the corner of my eye, I saw their male tribute looking at me. Is he planning the best way to kill me? Well, I'm pretty sure everybody is. I better not trust anybody. But it's hard to. I want to be friends with everybody!

When I pass the District 4 chariot I see THEIR male tribute smiling at me. I smile back of course. _He seems nice. _Maybe he can be my ally! I should remember that.

I get to my chariot and see Pollux waiting there. Coincidentally, _his _name is named after something in the sky too. His name came from the brightest star in the constellation of Gemini, the twins.

His outfit is also twinkling but instead of a dress – it will be weird if he wore one – he has a long black robe on. He's one of the tallest tributes here and the robe just enhances his features. The robe has different constellations around it but the biggest constellation there is – of course – Gemini.

He's wearing a simple black shirt underneath but his robe is buttoned up. Nobody will pay attention to that.

His stylist, Silver Gord, put him in black boots too. He's wearing some sort of crown. Like a king. He also has light make-up on so he could be recognized. I can see that Pictor and Silver are the perfect team.

Pictor comes up behind me and puts the same crown on me. It looks like a princess's crown. I feel like a princess in the stories my father tells me. Like, Princess Ariel or Belle. I can dream can I?

I smile at Pollux and he smiles back. "Pretty dress." He tells me when I arrive next to him. "Thanks. You look dashing." I reply giving him a playful shove. He laughs and says "Thanks. Need help to get on the chariot?"

Huh? What does he mean? When he gets on the chariot, I realize… I'm too short to get on it. I mean, the chariot's bottom is at my stomach. How am I supposed to climb up this thing without embarrassing myself? Then I remember Pollux…

"Sure. Thanks. I need that." He puts his hands on my hips and lifts me up into the air. I giggle sweetly and he sets me down on the chariot. "There you go little bird." He tells me as he lets go. I smile and curtsy.

"THE OPENING CEREMONY WILL START IN 55 SECONDS. ALL TRIBUTES MUST BOARD THEIR CHARIOTS." A voice booms into the room. Every tribute is clambering onto their chariots and having some last minute touch ups.

"This is it." I whisper bouncing with excitement. Pollux just nods and takes my hand. I look up at him questionably and he just shrugs. "Pictor said so." He said simply. I shrug as well and watch the doors open.

District 1's tributes Sparkle and Shimmer head out to loud applause. I think their names are pretty stupid. Sparkle and Shimmer? I think their stylist just put glue on their bodies and have them roll around in random shiny objects. They look quite shiny. But as dazzling as us.

_2. 3. 4_ I see the boy from District 4. I think his name is Darya.

_5. 6. 7. _I heard the names of the District 7 tributes derived from a tree and a type of wood.

_8. 9. 10. _We're almost there and I tighten my grip on Pollux's hand.

_11… _They roll out and we're right in front of the exits now. I'm surprised that I haven't fainted yet. I feel our chariot jerk and move. I automatically smile my most innocent smile. _Make them remember you…_

We hear booming noise when we go out. I see the Capitol citizens stomping and chanting our names. We stole the show again. Thank you Pictor.

I smile and wave at the audience. They're going crazy now. I blow a few kisses in the crowd and wave at the direction at where I blew it.

I actually see some of them crying and I know why. _I'm too small to die. _I just won myself some sponsors. I think Pollux got some too. He is a bit good-looking. His smile makes you want to be his friend.

When we arrive at Snow's Mansion I feel a new rush of hatred. I don't usually hate anybody but President Snow is downright mean. He sends innocent children into an arena to kill each other. He just sits there and enjoys it. He has no heart.

I almost glare at him when he comes out but I know that I have to look as angelic as possible. I still hate him. No matter how many times I smile at him. I am silently hitting him repeatedly over the head.

"Welcome Tributes! Welcome citizens of Panem! Welcome to the 75th annual Hunger Games!" he says a few more things like good luck and all that. I know that he's just waiting for the blood to shed. From afar, he smells like blood and roses. Ugh.

"May the odds be _ever_ in your favor." He smiles and waves us out. Good, I can't stand his stench wafting up my nose.

We enter the remake center again and our prep team rushes over to us.

"You were amazing!"

"Brilliant!"

"You two are absolutely magnificent!"

"I never worked with such amazing tributes!"

I smile at my prep team and they give me a mini trench coat. It's nice and warm in it. I felt like an icicle out there in the Capitol.

Pictor comes over and hugs me tightly. He whispers something in my hair like "I'm so proud of you". When we pull away I see that he is crying. I reach up and wipe some of his tears. He smiles at me and leads me to the elevator.

It's finally over. I feel bad that I will have to take off the dress. If only Pictor could let me keep it. Maybe I could give it to Prim or to Rysnna if I come home.

When we reach our floor I am immediately enveloped in a hug. Peeta pulls away and smiles so widely that I'm scared that the room might just light up. His teeth are just so white.

"Good job sweetheart." He tells me. Sweetheart. I suddenly smile when he says that. Only my father would call me that. Peeta just reminds me of my father. He also has blonde hair and blue eyes. To top it all off… He's nice to me. I think he even cares for me, like a father would.

"Thank you." I manage to say. He smiles again and hugs me quickly. He goes to Pollux and claps him on the shoulder. He wouldn't hug Pollux. That clap on the shoulder in boy language means "great job" How do I know? I have a fair amount of guy friends too. Riegan, Matzo and Felix are my friends. They taught me a few guy language lessons.

Katniss comes over with a big smile on her face and hugs me tightly. "You were great." She whispers in my hair. When she pulls away she tucks a stray strand of hair behind my ear…Just like my mother. Have my parents come back to life to live in Katniss and Peeta? If they start talking to me in their voices, I'm gonna lose it.

"Dinner time!" trills Effie. Seriously Effie? I WAS HAVING A MOMENT WITH MY NON-EXISTENT MOTHER! If I didn't know that she will also try to help me, I would've punched her. I rarely think these things… The Capitol is changing me!

Katniss smiles again and leaves me to go to Peeta. I walk to the dining room with Pictor and sit next to him. Peeta is at my right and Pictor's at my left. Pollux sits across from me. Katniss is on Peeta's right side with her head on his shoulder. She's not eating. She's probably tired.

Well, she was. Before we got to the soup course, she collapses and lies on Peeta's lap. Fast asleep. Huh. That's sort of cute. I mean, they ARE a couple right?

Everybody looked concerned and even some Avoxes tried to help. But Peeta just raises his hand. The voices stop at once and he picks up Katniss gently and carries her bridal-style.

"I'll bring her to her room. I'm pretty sure its fine if she doesn't watch the recaps of the Tribute Parade. She's really sleepy. She's been like this for hours." He says softly so not to wake her. Katniss shifts slightly and buries her head in Peeta's chest. Peeta smiles at her sleeping figure and carries her out of the room.

_That_ was cute. Really sweet too. Any girl would be lucky to have Peeta. Katniss is perfect for him. Peeta's calm and peaceful. He's even a good painter! He's also named the 2nd sexiest victor in the Capitol magazine I read when Pictor was drying my hair. Just after Finnick Odair.

I smile and get to my soup before we go to the sitting room…..

_**Katniss…**_

I missed dinner? That's what I learned when I woke up 1 hour after I collapsed. Peeta is sitting beside me stroking my hair. He knows that I love this gesture. Even if we're just friends.

"Hey there Kat." He says softly still stroking. "How are you feeling?" he seems genuinely concerned and I just smile. He smiles back and I sit up slowly.

"Where is everybody?" I ask. I was supposed to watch the recaps of the parade. But I guess I was too sleepy to stay awake.

"They're in bed." He says. I'm suddenly confused. Why is he still here? Did he just miss dinner too? For me? I feel guilty again.

"Did you miss dinner too?" I ask concerned. I'll be fine without dinner. I'm not saying that Peeta cannot live without dinner, it's just that he shouldn't sacrifice for me too much.

"No. I left for the dining room after I tucked you in. I came back to check if you're not sick or anything." Ok. At least he didn't miss it. I'm glad he didn't go hungry for me. I suddenly crave for his arms around me.

I don't know why but I do. While I was asleep, I had a nightmare about Peeta dying in an explosion. I thought it was going to be my father again but this time… it was him. I'm scared I might lose him.

He was the only guy in my life who made me feel safe. I have Gale but he's a different type of safe. I feel safe with him in the woods. But when we're in District 12, I'm afraid that he might burst out into a mental rant again about the Capitol. That's not safe, he might just be whipped.

Peeta… I feel safe in his arms. When I'm asleep, Nightmares don't come. Even when he just hugs me, I feel like I'm hugging my father again. Weird right? But he's just my friend. Not like I get butterflies in my stomach when he touches me. I just feel… nice and warm and great in his arms. Don't take it the wrong way.

Peeta was about to leave me in my room when I panicked. "No!" I almost yell and grab his hand. He turns around raising his eyebrows.

"Please… Stay here. I don't want nightmares again." I say almost crying. I sound like a little child. Peeta gives me my favorite lopsided smile and climbs onto the bed beside me.

He moves my head to use his arm as a pillow and puts his other arm protectively around me. I am taken back to the cave. In the arena he did the exact same thing. This calms me down. I don't want him to leave.

"Goodnight Peeta."

"Sweet dreams Katniss."

And on that night… I do.

~End of Chapter 4~

**HERE ARE THE CONTEST RULES!**

**You will be drawing Aquila and Pollux in the Opening Ceremony! How exciting! If you win you will get:**

**A SPECIAL CAMEO IN THE CHAPTERS WHERE THEY'RE IN THE ARENA! **

**Would you like that? That would be cool if you did :DDDD Just draw a picture of your best interpretation of Aquila and Pollux's look in the Tribute Parade and you will be guaranteed a cameo!**

**The winner will be announced when the 7****th**** Chapter is posted! You will get your cameo in Chapter 8 :D**

**Have fun and may the odds be **_**ever**_** in your favor! ~SummerSnitch flies away! :3**


	5. Training Time

**Author's Notes: I have been trying to update more frequently but archery and survival class is harder than I thought. :/ I know that you are all patient and stuff but bear with me! I am just stressed out with archery and this survival skills class… My dad wasn't kidding when he said that he will enroll me…**

**Anyway, I hope that you will take part in the contest :D (Info on my profile and at the end of the last chapter) I really need help with the story and doing this contest will really help me :) Come to think of it… If I don't update sooner, you will have more time working on your drawings! What do you think?**

**Credits to **_**booksandblades **_**for letting me use the names :D And sorry if it is too short and dull… I'm writing at midnight again.**

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THE HUNGER GAMES unless Rihanna writes a song about going to Narnia and having a holiday in Hogwarts… Yeah, that means I will never own the Hunger Games… sigh.**

**Chapter 5**

"**Training Time"**

_**Katniss…**_

That was a nightmare-free night. I have to thank Peeta for that. His arms are still around me and I think he's still asleep. I move my body and face him. His face looks so young and beautiful. He looks peaceful in his sleep. I eye him more carefully and watch his blond eyelashes move to the beat of his even breathing. This reminds me of Prim.

"Peeta," I use that special tone my mother used with my father. "Wake up!" His eyelids flutter open making his eyelashes move like butterfly wings about to take flight.

"Hey there Kat." He whispers. I kiss his forehead and stand up to go to the bathroom. After I finish using the colossal showers, I change into a dark green shirt and black pants. When I enter my room again, Peeta was gone. He's probably changing too.

Today is the first training day and I have to find out Aquila and Pollux's skills. I know that Aquila hunts and stuff but I have ZERO knowledge about Pollux. He looks strong, maybe he's like Peeta. Well, he looks like Peeta so that's sort of the point…

"Katniss, wait up!"

I turn around and see Peeta with his blue shirt and still wet hair. Somehow the shirt tightens up at his muscles and I feel something weird in my stomach. No wonder he was named second sexiest victor….. KATNISS! What _are_ you thinking! Stop it! He's just a damn friend! Scumbag brain…

"Hey Peeta." And I am surprised that my voice wasn't cracked. He smiles and we both enter the dining room. Aquila and Pollux are talking enthusiastically to each other about God knows what. I think they switched to the colors of the Capitol and how bright they are. Silly kids.

"I'm telling you! The yellow color is hurting my eyes every single time I see it!" said Pollux after swallowing his orange juice.

"Have you seen the cyan color? I'd rather drill out my eyeballs than look at it!"Replied Aquila dipping her rolls in hot chocolate.

"Have you noticed during that tribute parade – Oh hi Peeta! Katniss!" they both said smiling brightly. I feel my face muscles go automatically into a strained smile. I want both of them to win but that will not happen again. It was Seneca Crane's biggest mistake and look what he is now! Dead.

I can't just have them die. I have to help them but not get too attached to them if they _do_ die. This is going to be a long week.

"Good morning." Peeta replies a natural smile across his face. He just loves younger children.

I sit down across from them not even getting any food from the buffet table. They both sit there quietly now but they're both bouncing with excitement. They're excited? Huh. They must REALLY want to go home.

"So," I felt a little startled when Peeta sat beside me with a plateful of lamb stew. My mouth waters at the sight of the only good thing in the Capitol but decided to eat when my tributes are training.

"Let's not beat around the bush. What are your skills?" Peeta asks as he sips his hot chocolate.

"Well… I'm pretty strong. I once carried a huge deer that some hunter shot to the butcher…" then Pollux shifts his eyes and drops his voice to a whisper. "But don't tell. I don't want anybody to get in trouble." Well then. He is like Peeta… Too much like him that I think I might puke.

"Don't worry. You're secret's safe with us." Peeta laughs briefly and shifts back to seriousness. I'm not used to Peeta being like this. "Anything else Pollux?" he asks.

"Well, I can throw a spear pretty well. My dad taught me." He said tapping his chin with a finger.

"Okay. Aquila, what can you do?" I ask shifting my eyes to her. She doesn't take too long when she answers.

"I can hunt with a bow and arrow." Are my tributes like mini versions of me and Peeta? It looks like it. Except for the green eyes on Aquila… That's just weird.

"I'm a little rusty in throwing knives but I can climb trees really fast." Okay… This is almost creeping me out. She climbs trees. She hunts with a _bow and arrow._ This is like Déjà vu.

"That's great! But don't show the other careers what you can do. You don't want them to target you. Keep a low profile. Swing an axe. Tie some knots. Maybe test out the Gauntlet. Only preserve what you're good at until you're individual scoring with the Gamemakers." Says Peeta fluently.

"Aquila, stay clear of archery and Pollux don't go near the spear throwing station. And try to make some allies. Got it?" I say

Pollux nods and Aquila shakes her head vigorously. She may have the same skills as me but I must say… Is this girl sort of mental? Well, I guess it helps with her 'Sweet and Innocent' angle that we are s_urely _going to use for her interview.

Effie comes bursting in and she came at the exact time where Aquila was buttering her roll. She was surprised and threw the knife at Effie's direction. At least she said she was a little rusty at throwing knives or it would've killed Effie right on the spot. Instead, it hit the wall beside her.

Aquila looked like she was on the verge of tears. But she composed herself and pulled the knife from the wall. "I'm so so so so so so so so so so soooooo sorry Effie." She said with her big puppy dog emerald eyes staring up at her. Well, what could Effie do? Yell at her? She's too cute.

"It's alright." Says Effie patting Aquila's head awkwardly. "Now go and finish your breakfast." She said to her sweetly. Aquila smiled and skipped back to her seat. She continued eating like nothing happened.

"In ten minutes I will be taking both of you to the bottom of the training center. Just do your best!" squeals Effie in her stupid Capitol accent.

We just sat there in silence and Peeta didn't even eat his food anymore. He just awkwardly pushes the stew around the plate making odd swirls and messing it up.

After ten minutes Effie takes Aquila and Pollux to the training room and I'm alone with Peeta again. I hope my tributes will listen to us and will do their best to try and stay alive…

_**Aquila…**_

The first thing that registers in my mind when we are standing in the training room is how awfully smelly it is in here. Couldn't they at least put air fresheners or something?

Anywho… When the head trainer blows her whistle I immediately go to the knot tying station. I'm pretty decent at knot tying. I just want to learn more.

"Hello there." Greets Darya, the boy from District 4, when I reach the station. _Try to make some allies. _I hear Katniss in my head saying. Allies. Right.

"Hi." I say sweetly. He's smiling at me and I sit beside him. "Are you good at tying knots?" he asks smiling. "I'm…decent." I reply blushing. Darya smiles again and the instructor tells us how to tie a simple fisherman's knot.

Darya seems to be a natural at it but I'm not jealous. I mean, he tells me that he's been making fishing nets since he was a little child. He was also very skilled with a trident but throwing spears were just about the same.

"Would you like to sit with me for lunch? Molly is really just a 'lone wolf' as she calls it." Molly is Darya's district partner. She is sort of out of it and she has been spending the whole day painting pink swirls on a mahogany table. **(A/N:teehee…Mahogany)**

"Sure! I'd love to!" I reply bouncing on the balls of my feet. We eat lunch at a table far away from the other careers. Darya and Molly aren't like the blood thirsty careers in District 1 and 2. He volunteered for a frightened boy who he said was his brother.

"I know that Primrose Everdeen is your mentor Katniss's sister. Why did you volunteer for her?" he asks stirring his tea.

A lump in my throat appears and I almost choke out. Aquila! You are not weak. "She's my best friend. I don't want her to die." Darya gives me a pat on my tiny hand and lets the subject drop. Yeah. He could be a good ally.

"Hey Aquila!" Pollux is suddenly behind me with the boy from District 11 beside him. "Is it okay if I sit with you guys? All the other tables are sort of…taken." I look over at Darya who just nods and waves his hand toward him. I smile and let Pollux sit next to me.

The boy from District 11's name was Toli and he was quite big for a 13 year old. I was sitting in a table filled with giants. Darya doesn't even look thirteen but I won't tell him that I noticed. He's probably self-conscious about his looks.

"Hey guys. Would it be okay if we were all just allies?" suggests Darya. Damn. I was supposed to say that but he beat me to it. I shake my head up and down so vigorously that I'm afraid it might fall off.

"Let's tell our mentors and maybe they'll allow it. They did say that we should have allies." Says Pollux matter-of-factly.

"Yeah…" I say nodding my head slowly now. "Then it's settled! Tonight we tell our mentors!" announces Toli lifting his fork with a potato stuck to the end…..

"We want the boys from 4 and 11." Says Pollux when Peeta asked if we wanted allies. I nod my head along with him.

"Yeah. They're both strong and smart. They could be useful. Somehow…" I say drifting off. I really don't know. Maybe…

Peeta and Katniss stare at each other for a while. After their unspoken conversation Peeta smiles and says "We'll talk to their mentors in the morning. Good job." Katniss smiles and they both leave the room.

I feel quite baffled about this. That was…easy. Might as well get me an easy button to push. Pollux must be thinking the same thing. He looks at me with raised eyebrows.

_What was that all about? _Honestly Pollux, I don't know.

We've been training for 3 days and it was actually…fun. I woke up early everyday just to go down and train. I want to show people that I may be small but I am dangerous. Me, Pollux, Darya and Toli have been going to each station together.

Apparently, I'm good at camouflage. Who knew? I guess looking at Peeta's paintings and drawings of Katniss kind of grew on me. Also my experience of hunting in the woods has given me a mental picture on what light falling through leaves looks like. Or the wonderful beauty of the small lake I found a few days ago before the Reaping.

Pollux found out that he was not bad at knife throwing either. Since we didn't say we were so good at it we tried it out. I taught him the basic skills in throwing the knife and he was laughing a bit when he found out that his wrist was too twisted.

"Have your mentors talked to our mentors yet?" asked Pollux during lunchtime. It was the last day of group training. We'd better have some information.

Darya and Toli looked at each other and shrugged. "Nope. I hope they're all right with it though." Says Darya who looks deeply concerned and anxious. Katniss and Peeta told us that they would talk to them in the morning tomorrow! Sigh.

I hope so too. I have been becoming quite attached to Darya, Pollux and Toli. They're almost like…_friends_. But I can't think like that! What f we were the last ones in the arena? I would have to kill them. I don't want to kill them They've never done anything to me.

I just hope the spirit of my father would so help me now…

~End of Chapter 5~

**I'm sorry that it is dull :/ I will make it up to you guys when I do the Arena Chapters… Where the winner will be :D I only got one drawing! Come on guys! Or probably you all are just so artistic that you want to take your time? **

**Maybe leave me suggestions in a review I NEED IT! ~SummerSnitch flies away!**


	6. I'm a Fighter

**Author's Notes: So… Yeah… There's nothing to say here really. I hope that you join the contest! :D And if anybody is interested in Glee and ships Klaine I will be posting a Klaine fanfic soon. Also a Dramione fanfic so hold your tail feathers! And A lot of people are usually listening to songs and posting the playlist at the end… so… I'll do that :D **

**I got the title name from one of the songs :)**

**DISCLAIMER: The Hunger Games will not be in my possession unless I graduate from Pigfarts. **

**Chapter 6**

**I'm a Fighter**

_**Aquila…**_

This is it. Today is the day. Today is the day that we will be having our individual scorings with the Gamemakers. Am I nervous? No…Yes… Maybe. Ugh. What exactly will I do? Archery doesn't seem to be enough anymore. I can't just shoot a bunch of arrows and sing the anthem of Panem at the same time. Although, that idea doesn't seem half bad.

"Aquila, are you okay?" asks Darya. I look up at his sea blue eyes and smile. He has nothing to worry about. He's a career and he can throw a spear with his eyes closed. So he's been spending his time trying to find out what we'll do. Man, I hope I won't be the one to kill him.

"I'm fine. I guess I'll just wing it in there. There's no use trying to help me Darya. I'll most probably get a 5 or something like that." Where the hell did the optimistic Aquila go? In a cupboard under some stairs…

"You'll be fine…" Before he could say anything else a woman's (or a man's. I'm not sure because the Capitol accents make them sound the same) voice said "_DARYA CORNNICK, DISTICT 4"._

"Good luck." Was all I could say. I mean, he already has it but I had to say something comforting.

"Thanks. Don't underrate yourself Aquila." He says and flashes a smile of sympathy before he enters the training room. Well, I just hope that I won't. I'm trying hard not to.

"Have any idea what you're going to do?" asks Pollux when he sits down next to me after Toli leaves. No idea.

"Nope. I'm screwed the minute I get in there." I say burying my face in my hands. I should be stronger than this. I'm supposed to be fighting. I'm supposed to keep a level head and think of good things. But now, I'm seriously going to die in there. I watch the girl from 11 go in the training room and me and Pollux are left alone.

Every now and then he tries to spark up a conversation but fails obviously. After about 30 minutes (Honestly, what was she doing in there?) They call Pollux's name.

"Pollux, remember what Peeta and Katniss said." I hope he would remember… because I don't. "Don't worry. You too." Damn it. He said it too. I'll probably blow it in there.

He disappears behind the sliding metal doors and I am left alone in the lunch room. Well then. Ok. Just breath Aquila. Deep breath. But all that comes out are wheezing sounds. Great, where's that stronger person I know is in there? Prim would be killing me at this moment. Just kill me right now.

After 25 minutes of absolute heat and torture (I'm not kidding it's SIZZLING in there) I hear the unknown gender voice call "_AQUILA FLAMSTEED, DISTRICT 12."_ Well, it's now or never. Stop shaking Aquila.

The doors open to admit me in and I can see the Gamemaker want more than anything to go home. But what's weird here is that they're all staring intently at me. Ok… weird but that's how it's supposed to be.

Just breathe. Ok I take a deep breath and walked over to the archery station. It's like the bows and arrows were taunting me before. Now I get to hold them! Thank you!

I pick up a wooden bow and select my quiver of arrows. Then I have this crazy and weird idea. I go and find one of those dummies that Toli asks me to hang up so he can practice his boxing on it. When I find one lying on the ground I immediately take it to the Camouflage station.

I take the deepest red I could find and paint the word "Capitol" on its chest. The Gamemakers are looking at me with narrowed eyes. I know what they're thinking _What's she doing?_ But the new Head Gamemaker Plutarch Heavensbee looks at me with curious eyes. I think he wants a show.

Alright Plutarch. I'll give you a show. An episode that you'll never forget.

I hang up the dummy and position my first arrow. I walk a about 20 feet away from it.I let it fly and my weapon hits it square in the chest. Some Gamemakers gasp. Some of them were holding drinks and dropped them in shock.

_I hope that gave them an idea on who they're messing with._

I smirk and take a curved knife from the knife throwing table. I aim slowly and throw it at the dummy and decapitated it with one go. That's how Andrew died. That's why it's a crazy idea. I'm making them remember what they did to me and telling them that I will do much worse.

Plutarch Heavensbee nods his head and tells me to leave. I curtsy and throw the arrows and bow on the floor with a loud thud.

As I go up in the elevator I smirk to myself and lean on the wall. _Yeah. Think about it. If you had any brains._

We were very quiet during dinnertime. Great. Very nice of you guys to think of a way to make everything more dramatic.

After about 15 minutes of small talk Peeta lets go of his spoon and looks at us intently. "Alright enough of the chitchat. What did you two do?" he asks.

Pollux almost screams out and says "I DON'T KNOW WHAT CAME OVER ME! IT JUST HAPPENED!" he said running his fingers through his hair in quick motions.

Katniss looks alarmed and tries to calm him down. "Now. Now, exactly tell us what you did?" He takes deep breaths and calms down enough to talk.

"I..I shot a spear at the Gamemakers…" he said so softly that it was barely over a whisper. Effie drops her spoon all the way down to the floor and faints. Pictor and Silver gasp with their hands over their mouths like two school girls just heard some juicy gossip.

"I.. I got so angry! They weren't paying any attention to me at all! I shot some spears everywhere like you told me to. After practically destroying almost every target possible, I realized that their backs were completely facing me. And guess what they were doing? THEY WERE EATING ICE CREAM!" He yelled his hands balled into fists.

Why would anybody turn their back on Pollux for a silly reason like Ice Cream? That makes me hate the Capitol even more now. Which makes me all the more proud of me Hanging the Capitol.

"I lost it! I just saw the first Ice Cream Sundae and shot my spear right through the glass." He hung his head and ran his fingers again in frustration. Katniss looked at him with sympathy. I know that she knows how he feels. She shot an arrow at the Gamemakers once. So… They're pretty much in the same predicament.

"Now, Aquila what did you do?" asked Peeta with hopeful eyes. Hoping that I didn't do something stupid. Well… I was close. I just hung the Capitol and killed them… How crazy could that be?

"I… It's very complicated." Effie chose that time to wake up and listen to what I did. "I…. I hung a dummy. And…and I painted the word Capitol on it and…" they all looked at me hoping for the best.

"I decapitated it with a knife." I hear a thud on the floor and assume it's Effie fainting again but I don't care. They just recovered from Pollux's disaster. I wouldn't be surprised if they all strangled me to death here.

"Let's all just see how those…actions faired with your scores." Says Peeta rubbing his temple and leading us to the sitting room.

We sat through 22 tributes. The careers got scores in the eight-to-ten range. Meh. Darya got a 9. Toli got a 9 too. I wonder what they did to get that score.

"And now District 12. Pollux Scott." Pollux groaned and put his head in his hands. We all stare at the screen and see a big fat number 12 next to his name! A 12! This cannot be happening!

"POLLUX! You got a 12!" I shake him and he looks up just in time to see his score. "H-How?" "I guess they liked your ice cream murder." I say jokingly punching him lightly.

He smiles and looks at the TV again just so we can see my score. "District 12. Aquila Flamsteed." Another 12 came across and flashed in the TV screen. What? This doesn't make any sense. I look questioningly at Katniss and she just shrugs. "Worked for me. Worked for you, I guess." She said before sending us to our rooms for bedtime.

When I woke up to Effie's reminder that it is a"big, big, big day" my eyelids were still flashing the number 12 whenever I blink. I couldn't believe I got a 12! Katniss said they like tributes with a little heat so the games are more interesting. I don't get why they gave us a higher score for having a temper.

After I finish my shower and put my clothes on I tied my hair in a high ponytail and went out the door. Every window had sunlight falling through it in slight golden rays. The air had a small amount of mist to add that little touch of humidity. The smell of the food in the dining room absolutely consumed me and I almost ran to get my breakfast.

"Do you think Plutrach will allow it?" I stop dead in my tracks when I heard Katniss speak. I made my footsteps lighter and hid behind the stretch of wall that is before the entrance to the dining room.

"I don't know but I know that this alliance will help. They need all the help they could get…" replies Peeta whose voice is so soft that I could barely hear it. I was able to distinguish a few more words of his next sentence until they were rudely interrupted by Effie. After all this talk about manners she doesn't have it in the morning.

Well, I guess it's safe to go in pretending that I just came. Damn you Effie, I swear I will…never mind. I put on a smile and walk into the room with a spring in my step. Sweet and innocent remember?

Peeta apparently was glaring at Effie the whole time while Katniss sighed at his irritancy. When I take my seat without being noticed for an entire ten minutes they finally look up. Maybe it's because I dragged my chair a teeny tiny bit too loud on the marble floor.

"Oh. Aquila, you're here. We didn't hear you." Said Katniss. Haha. Sure Katniss. "It's okay. I have light footsteps." I said with as little sarcasm as possible.

"Anyway. Today we are going to help you prepare for your interview. You will each have 4 hours with Effie and 4 hours with me and Katniss. Sound fair enough?" said Peeta "WHAT? 4 hours with Effie? Are you trying to punish us for traumatizing the Gamemakers?" asked Pollux loudly from behind me. Well, I must be going deaf too.

"No we are not Pollux. It's just that… Well, Effie insisted on it. She said you needed work." Said Katniss ruefully. Great…. Just great.

"Just do your best and luckily, you're head will still be on after your session…"

**THE INTERVIEW!**

4 hours with Effie was torture… 4 hours with Katniss and Peeta telling me to act like a 5 year old was meh… but 2 hours with my prep team is really about to make me crack.

They did the same damn routine they did when I first came here. They insisted that they should because of the amount of time that I've been in the Camouflage station. Who can blame me for that? I'm supposed to use my strengths right?

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaannnnddddd DONE!" squealed Vidlori. Finally. "Pictor?" she asked. "PICTOR!" yelled the others in agreement including myself. Please, he's so much better company than these inarticulate bumbles…

My muppets ran out of my room and 5 minutes later Pictor came with a dress concealed from me in a cloth of black.

"Hey there my little eagle." He said lightly poking my nose with his pointer finger. I smile and let him work on my make-up and hair. He applied, once again, blue eyeliner and some light pink blush to my cheeks. He also added some tiny bit of sparkly glitter to my cheeks. It's not too noticeable but it tickles and falls off when I smile too much. Ha! I don't have to listen to Effie about smiling a lot!

When he finished he had me close my eyes until I put on my dress and shoes. When I opened them I see another Pictor beauty. Pictor gave me a light blue dress that sparkles when I twirl or move a lot. It ends slightly above my knees. It's a spaghetti strap dress but he gives me a lavender shawl so I won't get cold. He put me in black glittering flats.

"Voila! We are done. Let's get you there. I'm pretty sure you will steal the show once more. What's your angle for the interview?" he asks as we go to the elevator. "Sweet and Innocent. I think I can do that. Do you think I can?" I ask him back with big sparkling eyes. Yeah. I think I am

"Of course you can! You can do anything! Look there's Pollux right now! He looks great." He says when he sees Pollux. He does look amazing in a black slightly less sparkly dress robes **(Think of Harry Potter's Dress Robes in Goblet of Fire) **with a white bow tie.

"Hey there baby bird." He said walking up to me in the elevator. I smile back and I hear a ding and the elevator starts to move down…..

**(10 minutes later)**

There goes Shimmer from District 1. She is going for the sort of shy angle. Mmmhhmmm… She doesn't look shy. Sparkle comes up next and He's going for the handsome and confident sort of angle. Yaddah Yaddah Yaddah.

After a few minutes where Darya was a funny and witty guy and Toli was a gentle giant. Ceaser Flickerman calls out my name "AQUILA FLAMSTEED. The Girl of the Stars!" I put on my signature smile and skip onstage. Ceaser, who is in Lavender now, shakes my hand and we start talking.

"So Aquila, you are hardly the smallest tribute here. Against all these big tributes, do they intimidate you?"

"No. The smaller the better." I say simply swinging my feet that were dangling a few inches from the floor. Everybody ooohs and aaahhhs. Ooh! Aah! You are all so stupid that I'm fascinated by it!

"Really? Well I guess everybody will remember that. Now let's talk about your training score. 12! A first in Hunger Games history!" he says to a tremulous amount of applause. I blush making my cheeks redder than the make-up.

"Well, I guess it was okay. Personally I think I would've gotten a 3. What I did was not too amazing." I said waving it off. The Gamnemakers were chuckling and some were shaking their heads.

"Oh? Tease!" he says bouncing on his seat. Ceaser and Pictor seem like the only people I like in the Capitol.

"Oh no no no! I wouldn't! Right Gamemakers? I say giving them my puppy dog eyes. They all shake their heads vigorously. Some were even shouting "Don't!" "That's a secret! Nobody should ever know!"

I take that they are still frightened about what I did so I take that as a cue to laugh sweetly "Thank you misters! Sorry! Only between me and the Gamemakers!" I say. After Ceaser laughs h goes to a question that I was prepared to answer but don't want to.

"Primrose Everdeen hm? What is your relation to her?" The audience and possibly the whole Capitol is in dead silence. You can hear a pin drop from miles away.

"Prim is my best friend. She has done so many things for me that I can't bear to see her die. I' actually a little confused as to why her name was called again. Isn't it highly unlikely? But what do I know! I'm just a 13 year old kid." I say letting out a breathy laugh. The Gamemakers shift a little bit… That's interesting.

"And she came to you in the Justice Building right? What did she tell you?" he said ignoring what I just said a few seconds ago.

"She told me to come home."

"What did you tell her?" he says holding my hands.

"I said that I won't try to win. I will do everything in my power to get out. For her."

"And so you shall." He says kissing my hands. "Aquila Flamsteed! The Girl of The Stars!" he says and raises my right hand. Everybody claps and whistles.

It's done. Now I can go to sleep…. And wait for the adventure and terror to begin.

~End of Chapter 6~

**I made a few Starkid references here:D Review please!**

**Playlist**

**It's not right but It's okay – Whitney Houston**

**Fighter – Christina Aguilera **

**I Still Think – Darren Criss**


	7. I Believe In You

**Author's Notes: SO SO SO SO SOOOOOO SORRY FOR THE LATE UPDATE. I was really busy with my cousin's debut party. She's turning 18 and I was asked to help plan, sing and shoot the ceremonial flaming arrow (Scary as SH*T!) It was Hunger Games themed so I guess that makes sense. **

**The winner of the drawing contest will be announced after the Chapter :) This is the first ARENA CHAPTER! I've been dying to write people getting killed… I mean… writing about the fights and action. I'm a bad person… **

**The letters that are Italicized are the ones being said on TV :]**

**I will not promise that it will be good so feel free to review and tell me how sh*tty it is… I don't mind.**

**DISCLAIMER: Do we have to repeat this? Hunger Games. No. Me. Ownsta…. Wow I suck at Spanish.**

**Chapter 7**

**I Believe In You**

* * *

_**Aquila**_

_The trees are catching fire. I run fast. But not fast enough. Running…Running…Running… That's all I'm doing. What am I running from? Where will I go? Who is following me?_

_I hear the loud rumble of some unknown object from above. It's coming closer. I run faster and harder but with every step I take, it just seems as though I'm on a treadmill. I am moving but not moving forward._

"_!" Who was that? It sounded like a little boy. Andrew?_

"_ANDREW?" I try to shout but no sound comes out. My voice catches in my throat and I choke. "And…rew." I try to say but to no avail._

_I see a familiar face. A face masked in sympathy… _

"_I'm sorry…" he says_

I jerk awake from my slumber while cold sweat runs down my back. "Argh…" I mutter to myself before I go to the bathroom. Another dream that ends in the same thing every time.

Who was that man? Why was he apologizing? Is there something in this dream like…Like a message? If so, what kind of message? Is it telling me how I'll die in the arena? Is it making me recall something that I will use someday? Too many questions, I'm getting a headache. Today of all days to get a headache. Fate must be telling me something.

Speaking of the arena, today is when we will be going inside. 23 of us to our imminent deaths and 1 of us who will forever be a puppet to the Capitol. Geez, nobody wins.

I hear soft knocking on my door and I am relieved that it isn't Effie. Effie knocks so loudly that I'm afraid that the door might come off its hinges. But I think she won't be that hard. The door is Mahogany, her favorite wood… Don't ask me how I know that.

I splash my face with water and walk over to the door. I see standing there is Pictor. "Hey there my little eagle." He says with a smile. He's smiling? Maybe he wants me to… Of course not! He's my friend. He's probably just excited.

He hands me a simple outfit to wear. A Black t-shirt, camouflage jogging pants, a weird purple belt and black rubber shoes. Black is the color scheme for District 12 because… well of coal.

I put my hair in a bun so nobody will pull it if I run. I'm not dying in the first 10 seconds. I'm making sure of that. "Ready Aquila?" asks Pictor putting his hands on my slightly tense shoulders. "Yeah… I hope so."

"You know what a lot of people in the Capitol say you have that defines you?" he says checking my hair. "My short height?" I ask reluctantly. Come on let's face it… I'm so short. I'm like 4 foot 10.

"No honey," he says shaking his head. He puts his hands on my shoulders and says in all seriousness "Courage." I look at him incredulously. Me? Courageous? That's absurd.

"It is something most of the tributes greatly lack. And something you have to the fullest extent. I knew that you had it the moment you volunteered for Primrose. It takes a great deal of courage to do that. You have courage Aquila," Pictor crouches down and tucks a strand of hair behind my ear.

"And I don't intend of having you waste it."

* * *

_**Katniss**_

I think I'm going to explode. I'm completely unprepared. My tributes are going to die! _SMACK. _Well, that was completely uncalled for.

"Ow! Peeta, what was that all about?" I asked as I rub my cheek. Peeta looks at me with those intense blue eyes. "They are not going to die. We'll make sure of that. Remember the _plan?"_ he asks emphasizing the word 'plan' Of course I know the plan, I don't know if I'll have my tributes live long enough for it to carry on.

"You think it will work?" I ask as he takes my hand to lead me to the observation room. He sighs and turns to me. "It's fool proof." He says reassuringly. "What's the worst that could happen?" "They could die." I say choking on my last word.

I have grown attached to Aquila and Pollux. They don't deserve to be here. Peeta seems to read my mind and he grabs my shoulders lightly so I could face him but I drop my head trying to wipe away my tears. He pulls my head up with his thumb and index finger so I could look at him. I was forced to look into those light blue pools that are his eyes.

"They won't die," he said again wiping a stray tear from my cheek with his thumb. He looked at me seriously and said "Count on it." I smile back at him. Maybe he's right…

He smiles and takes me into the observation room restricted only for mentors. We have different rooms for different districts. Sometimes, if you have other mentor friends they could come and observe with you. Or vice-versa. The only catch is that… Your tributes have to be dead. So… I won't be the one to visit… I hope.

Our observation room is the same as every other room. Light blue walls that match Peeta's eyes with dark blue vertical stripes. A white plush carpet with black swirls. A long black couch with a white number 12 in the middle. The best part is the coffee table which contains our snacks and beverages and any sort of refreshments.

There is also a laptop on the table and Peeta lets go of my hand to check it out. "Hey Katniss! Check this out! It contains the amount of money the sponsors gave our tributes and the items we can send." I walk over and sit next to him looking over and surprised to see that Aquila's sponsor money is over 15 million. Pollux has a fair million as well.

"Wow. The interview must have worked." I said as Aquila's money went higher without stopping. "Yup. Now, how do we get the TV on?" asks Peeta as he stands up and looks around for possibly the remote. He moves his hands on the walls and he stops on a specific point and pushes what I seem to think is just the wallpaper.

Suddenly the stretch of wall in front of me separates and reveals a plasma screen television. It switches to life and the screen divides into 3 sections. "Cool." Says Peeta when he sits beside me an energy bar in hand. I raise my eyebrows at him and he just shrugs "I didn't eat breakfast. I was nervous." He says and bites the bar again.

I was nervous too but now that I'm here… I feel sort of uneasy now. Unlike Peeta, I ate breakfast and I think it might just come back up after the bloodbath at the Cornucopia.

A woman's voice says on the TV "The Hunger Games will start in 3 minutes." Well… This is it. The moment we've been waiting for and I have observed that Peeta has opened another energy bar. I pat on his shoulder and he looks at me with wide shining eyes. His tense figure relaxes and he smiles at me. I'm surprised that the granola bits haven't stuck to his teeth.

And then we see the Cornucopia. It really is floating on water. It's… a boat? It's filled with the supplies they need. Weapons, food, shelter. The essentials. But the arena looks different.

Everything is encased in a sea of clear water. There are three islands. The one in the middle is a huge jungle with sand at the edges of the jungle. The one on the right is a city. A ruined city. With all the fallen buildings and broken down cars. The last one on the left is a desert. Just a desert. A cactus here and there but everything else is pure sand.

_The Gamemakers have really outdone themselves this year, Am I right Claudius? _Said Ceaser through the distant chews of Peeta. Who now has a bread roll in his hand. He's a baker… Typical.

_Absolutely Ceaser! 3 main islands and the Cornucopia is going to be hard to get to. The tributes have to swim as fast as they can to get to it. _Replied Claudius in the thick Capitol accent.

_I guess District 4 has an advantage here! _Said Ceaser with excitement etched in his every syllable. The arena HAD to be like that this year. Thanks a lot Plutarch.

I see 24 small whirlpools form at strategic areas of the arena's sea. All 24 tributes are standing on metal platforms that seem to tilt slightly when they clicked into place. I spotted Pollux first. He looks wildly around the arena licking his lips. I see Aquila about 5 tributes away from him observing her surroundings with a poker face on.

The countdown begins.

_60… 59… 58_

Aquila is positioning her feet precisely so that she could leap farther away from her platform. She could to the Cornucopia first if she could swim fast.

_57…56…55_

I spot Toli and Darya on Platforms next to each other. Plutarch probably stationed them like that. They are the ones who need to help each other to get to the Cornucopia to help Aquila and Pollux.

_54…53…52_

Pollux looks over at Aquila. Aquila seems to be oblivious to his stare and is just concentrated on getting in the right position to jump. The right division of the screen flickers to life and I see Aquila's face in a close-up. Same goes for the left side with Pollux. Peeta is eating his 5th roll with hurried swallowing.

_51…50…49_

_Every tribute seems to be concentrating intensely. Look at Aquila from District 12. Positioning herself. You think she as a chance Ceaser? _

_She didn't get a 12 in training for nothing now did she Claudius? _Answered Ceaser with a booming laugh

_Yes. Let's see if the Gamemakers knew what they were doing when they gave her that score. _

_48…47…46_

"I'm scared." Said Peeta suddenly. That's surprising for me. He's rarely ever scared. I always saw him as very brave and strong. Now he's confessing that his feelings were… scared?

"I mean, look at Aquila. She's s-small and the others might crush her… and l-l-look at Pollux. His eyes seem lost and I think h-he's terrified in th-there." Said Peeta voice shaking. He brings his knees up to his chest and buries his face in his knees. I think I heard a dry sob.

What am I supposed to do? Comfort him? I only saw one person like that. And she is a 13 year old girl. Peeta is 17 year old teenager and he looks as helpless and lost as a stray puppy in a cardboard box on your front porch soaked in the rain. Ok, that was a bit too specific a description but… you get the point. He's… frightened. And I don't know what to do.

I shyly move closer to him and put my arms around him. Some soothing words would probably be the first step. "I scared too Peeta." That's not soothing is it? Then I just awkwardly pat him on the back.

He looks up at me with his eyes shining and he seems to start to compose himself. "I-I'm sorry… My emotions got the better of me…" he tries to wipe away the tears and I just brush them off with my thumb. "You just care Peeta… And that's what I love about you." Tell me that I did not just say that… _stupid…stupid…STUPID._

His eyes watch me curiously until I hear a deep voice on the TV counting down from ten.

_10… _Wait, it can't have been a full minute yet.

_9… _Peeta sees my expression and caresses me in his arms but I still feel anxious.

_8… _Aquila looks ready

_7... _Pollux looks frightened

_6… _Peeta starts stroking my hair and I start to calm down a bit

_5… _Pollux looks around and locks eyes with Aquila

_4… _Aquila nods

_3…_ Pollux nods

_2…_ I wonder what they were thinking?

_1… _Too late to wonder now, the gong just rang.

Aquila does an impressive swan dive into the water and swims like a pro. I feel Peeta's smile on his face as he says quietly _Go Aquila…_

Pollux swims fast as well but the Careers seem to be catching up on him and trying to pull him down. Darya swims and catches up on Aquila who is a quarter of a mile to the Cornucopia. My eyes leave the center screen and watch as Pollux struggles against the band of careers from District 1 and 2.

_Scared you might die District 12? _A girl with jet black hair and large deep black eyes says with so much malice.

_Once we're done with you I think your little District partner could be a good addition to my kill list. _Says Shimmer coldly holding tightly onto Pollux to keep him from escaping.

Suddenly a large body appears behind Sparkle from District 1 and slams him down hard. The others swim as fast as they could towards the Cornucopia… or away from him.

_Go Pollux! Go to the Cornucopia! I'll catch up with you guys at the Jungle! Tell Aquila too! _Then Toli swims away to the direction of the island with the trees and possible muttations from the Capitol but I don't dwell on that now. I flit my eyes to the screen of Aquila and see her fighting off the boy from 8 who looks as though he could snap her in two.

Out of nowhere, a spearhead pops out of the boy's chest and he fell to the ground with a loud thud.

_Thanks… s_aid Aquila giving Darya a genuine smile. _You're welcome. Now get as much supplies as you can. Toli will be deep in the jungle island. He might be setting up shelter. _Aquila nods and points behind him eyes wide. _Darya! Behind you! _Darya whips around and thrusts his already bloody spear into a menacing looking girl with fiery red hair. She lets a gasp escape her lips and falls in the water. Dropping the knife in her hand.

Darya picked it up and laughed hollowly. _Shame. Lily was so sweet until the Gamemakers gave her a 6. Think she went mental. _Darya said shrugging and throwing a messenger bag to Aquila who quickly puts it on along with 4 other bags. 2 other messenger bags and 2 backpacks. I chew on my fingernails ignoring the flames that were painted on them a week ago. How is she going to swim with all those bags?

"The belt, it acts as a floatation device." Said Peeta answering the question in my head. At least she won't drown. Aquila quickly grabs another piece of black cloth and dives into the water. She pushes the big gold ornament in the middle of her belt before she hit the water. She is very smart for figuring that out.

Darya kills 2 other tributes and grabs a plastic crate of food. He finds rope and in lightning speed ties the rope around it. He slung it around his shoulders looking like a backpack.

Pollux arrives on the boat panting like a wet dog. He spots Darya and smirks _You look like a turtle._ Darya rolls his eyes and throws the second spear on the floor into Pollux's free hand. _Shut up Pollux. This is not the time to be joking about my physical appearance. _He says although I could see a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

"Trust Pollux to make such a serious and bloody event so amusing." Chuckles Peeta beside me. He still has an arm around me. Not that I don't mind. Besides… the venue is cold…

_Okay, sorry. Where's Aquila? _He says while getting a few packs of dried fruit with him. He's not rushing it. The careers are surprisingly slow in getting to the Cornucopia. I think it has to do with their size. It's a disadvantage to them and they don't live near water.

_Jungle…_ Was all Darya said before he dove into the water after pushing the button on his belt. Pollux does the same and swims towards the middle island.

_The careers are slow-pokes in getting to the Cornucopia and some of the other tributes seem to be struggling as well to get to it. _Said Claudius Templesmith the Ever-so-captain-obvious.

"You think?" sneered Peeta beside me. I chuckle lightly and he just laughs too. What kind of mentors are we?

Aquila is trekking through the Jungle panting slightly but not completely out of breath. She stops at a big rock and starts to remove all the bags around her body. She opens up the black cloth first and a jacket falls out of it. _Good. I'm freezing. _She said to herself as she put it on. The black cloth revealed more though it contained a wide array of knives.

It reminded me of the set of knives Clove had in my Hunger Games. That thought made me feel sick and secretly I hoped Aquila would just get rid of them. But a mentor wouldn't tell her to do that. So I just had to suck it up as she placed the knives in the inside of her jacket like Clove did. Sigh…

She started to go through the bags and she found pretty decent stuff. She found bow and some arrows in the biggest backpack there. How convenient. She also found 3 (empty) water skins, 3 pairs of socks, matches, 2 balls of twine, 2 ropes, can of pepper spray (that was unexpected) and some apples and oranges in a plastic bag at the top of the second backpack.

And then her head snapped up. She just packed up everything in the biggest backpack. She heard something. She was looking wildly around until I heard a bloodcurdling scream from a boy no older than 4 from the far distance. Aquila's eyes lit up in recognition and ran with the backpack hanging from her wrist.

The boy was screaming: _Aquila! Help me!_

~End of Chapter 7~

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**SO HERE IS THE CONTEST WINNER!**

**Both entries from 'I equal awesome' and '.Cookie'**

**I couldn't decide so you both win! Woot woot! Just tell me in a review if you want to be a mentor or a tribute who will die in the Arena :D one will be the mentor and the other the tribute. First come first serve. Sooooo… yeah :]**

**I know you hateme for the late update but at least review for me? That would be great!**

**Playlist**

**Perfect – P!nk **

**Count On Me – Bruno Mars**

**Take My Breath Away – Jessica Simpson (I feel cheesy today ;])**


	8. Allies And Enemies

**Extremely sorry for the late update! But here is the next chapter confirming any of your suspicions on the Cliffhanger last time :D**

**DISCLAIMER: Hunger Games… Seriously? If I owned it then I would never be writing fanfictions of it in the first place**

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**Chapter 8**

**Allies and Enemies**

Aquila ran. She ran as fast as she could to her brother. She forgot that her brother was dead. She forgot that he wasn't really here. It was probably older sister instincts. She couldn't stop. She had to get to him. She had to make sure he was safe in her arms once she gets to him.

"AQUILA! HELP!"

There it was again. The voice of that innocent child. Waiting and waiting for her to rescue him. "Andrew! I'm coming!" Meanwhile in the preview room, Katniss was currently gripping onto Peeta's shoulder. "YOU IDIOT!" She screamed at the TV screen. "It's a trap Aquila! Go back!" she started to cry and Peeta calmly took her hand off of him.

She realized that she was probably cutting off the circulation on Peeta's shoulder and cried on it instead. "She's going to d-die! We've failed the plan!" she sobbed possibly harder. She was looking forward to bring Pollux and Aquila to District 13 so she could train them for the new rebellion. Yes, that was the plan.

Peeta rubbed soothing circles onto her back and whispered words of comfort in her ear. "Katniss, you know Plutarch really wouldn't kill them He's just trying to make the games look more realistic." Katniss's sobs became softer but she was still sniffling and shedding tears onto Peeta's shirt.

After a few minutes – And Aquila is still running around frantically like a lost puppy – she finally calmed down and looked at the screen with still blurry eyes. Peeta kept patting her back softly and said soft reassurances every so often. In the Arena, Aquila was struggling to find her brother that it was making everybody watching glued to the screen.

"Aquila… You're too late, as always." Aquila whipped around and saw her beloved brother. His body was melting like an ice cream cone in the hot sun. "You came but you're too late. You don't love me." Aquila's eyes went wide and she tried to reach out for Andrew but she drew her hand back in a hiss. He was in a force field.

"Of course I love you, that's why I came! Don't leave me Andrew!" she cried tears spilling down to her cheeks. Andrew just tilted his head. Then it fell off like it was on rusty hinges. Aquila stared wide eyed and suddenly a flurry of visions went through her mind.

_Don't kill her! Kill us!_

_Never touch our daughter again._

_Aquila, help me!_

_I'm sorry…_

"You're not real… Not real." She repeated the small phrase in her mind. A_ndrew is dead. This is not real. _"Of course I'm real but you don't love me." Aquila looked up and smirked. "Of course I don't love you. You're not Andrew, you're a mutt." Then suddenly, Andrew's head reattached itself on his body. His whole size doubled then tripled until it was a half giant.

Aquila just laughed and every citizen of Panem stared at their screen like she was crazy. Katniss chewed on her nails and rocked back and forth. Peeta knows she knows what she's doing. Aquila straightened up. "HA! You think you scare me mutt? You are pathetic. You can barely hurt a fly."

Giant Andrew roared and started flailing his hands around. Aquila closed her eyes and nobody saw that she took out a knife from her jacket. When the mutt was close enough to smash her, Aquila thrust a knife through his wrist and turned the blade around inside his flesh. Andrew let out a moan and dissolved instantly, like millions of pixels.

Katniss stared wide-eyed at the screen while Peeta clapped softly. On screen, Aquila was smirking again and looked up. "Did I make you proud guys?" she was talking to nobody. She looked crazy again. Then Katniss laughed and said "She's talking to us. If I had away of telling her that I'm really proud I would say it right in her face." Peeta laughed with her and Aquila started on her way again.

"AQUILA!" Oh come on! They've had enough mutts already. That was only one but a real handful. Aquila took out another knife and was getting ready to throw it when gentle hands grabbed her wrists, stopping her from killing whoever called her name. Aquila looked back and smiled warmly when she saw Darya behind her with a raised brow.

Pollux appeared through the big leaves and trees swatting away the bugs on his legs. "You guys scared me." Breathed Aquila when Darya let go of her wrists smirking. Toli came out with a confused looking girl behind him. She was about the same height of Aquila and had dark blond hair and dark blue eyes. She looked at the tall boy in front of him and looked at everybody else. Her blue irises boring into Aquila's emerald ones.

"Hello. I'm Mia Green. District 10." Pollux narrowed his eyes and looked pointedly at Toli. "We don't need any more Allies, Toli." Toli just glared at Pollux and explained "I found her by the water coughing and spluttering." Mia just traced patterns on the mud with her foot, refusing to look up. "I couldn't leave her." Mia looked up and smiled sheepishly "You could've just killed me you know. I don't think I have enough strength to move on in the games anyway, I'm not important."

Aquila looked at her with sympathy and walked over to her. "Everybody's lives are important. You can stay with us." Pollux looked at her with disbelief on his face. Darya rubbed his eyes, hoping that this was a dream and she wasn't saying these things. And that Mia Green did not exist.

Aquila rolled her eyes. "I can't kill her and neither can you guys. So bear with me, she could be useful. Do you know how to hunt?" Mia shook her head but perked up slightly knowing that she won't be killed without significance. "I know how to throw knives though…" "Excellent!" Aquila opened her jacket and revealed her wide array of knives. "Take one, you'll have to play with your strengths if you want to last long in these games Mia."

Everybody's mouths were now gaping and Mia almost cried. "Thank you. That means a lot." She smiled brightly and Aquila smiled back. It was hard to tell which smile was friendlier. "We're running out of time. We need to move." Said Pollux still doubting adding Mia into their group. The 5 allies trudged through the forest until they found a spot to set up, night has already fallen upon them. It was not too far from the beach and they could see the sky clearly.

"It's a good thing Darya found a food crate. We won't have to hunt as often." Said Toli. Though Aquila looked a little crestfallen nodded her head. She shouldn't be looking for danger… Who was she kidding, she was already in danger ever since she volunteered in the first place. Trouble found her and she welcomed them with open arms.

There was a rustle of leaves and everybody whipped their heads around Looking frantically for whatever made that noise. Aquila stood up and went through all the bushes. "No one's here. Must be the wind." Pollux looked skeptical but continued setting up their dinner. Mia was making a basket out of leaves and string she has in her small backpack. Little did they know, they were being spied upon by a certain blonde career.

Oh no, he's not with them anymore. He snuck off. He's not here to spy for them, rather to spy for himself. He can't just ask them to become allies, that would be absurd. Caddock may be big and strong but he had brains too. He just had to wait them out. Maybe reason with them later in the games when all the other careers are dead. That sounded like a plan, a simple one but it's still a plan.

"Are you sure it's just the wind? It doesn't seem to windy." Asked Mia who was adding the finishing touches to her basket, even adding some flowers on the handles. Aquila sighed and shrugged "Maybe it was some capuchin or something. That's a pretty basket by the way." She pointed to the container in Mia's hands and she smiled widely "Thanks." She was now adding some vines to make it stronger while her brow furrowed in concentration.

"Girls, dinner!" called Pollux in a motherly voice. Both girls giggled and went over to the make-shift fort of leaves and rocks that Darya and Toli made. They had a quiet dinner of dried fruits, beef jerky and bread rolls. All of the food was found in Darya's food crate. Or what Pollux likes to call 'his turtle shell'.

"Tomorrow we're looking for water. There has to be some fresh water in the jungle." Said Aquila chewing on her jerky while Mia was turning her basket around and around her hands. "Aquila's right, first thing in the morning, we'll go water hunting." Pollux almost choked on his jerky when he finished coughing he spoke up "Is there even such a thing as water hunting?" he asked amused. Everybody burst into laughter and Mia just had to laugh as well.

When they all finished with the best medicine, they all settled sleeping schedules. Mia offered to keep watch this night while everybody slept. Aquila would do tomorrow and Toli the next day. Darya would keep watch of the fort when they go water hunting and Pollux would keep guard of the fort when everybody else goes regular hunting.

Everybody finally settled down to sleep while Mia took out her knife and sat at the entrance of the fort. The soft snores of her allies kept her calm and reminded her that she was safe and sound… for now. After 4 hours of tracing swirls and hearts on the mud in front of her she heard the rustle of leaves again. She stood up with her knife poised in her hand. "Who goes there?" she whispers threateningly "I have a knife and I'm not afraid to use it!"

"I won't hurt you! Put the knife down and I will show myself." Said a voice from a bush in front of her. She narrowed her eyes suspiciously towards the bush "Why should I believe you?" she asked the bush or rather the person hiding behind the bush. "I'll drop all my weapons and leave them in the bush. I won't harm you unless you drop your knife." She was still doubtful and she doesn't want to wake up her allies, they would kill him on the spot even if that's what the Hunger Games are all about.

"I need to hear you drop your weapons, then I'll drop mine." She said with a hiss in her tone. The unknown person drops their weapons with a soft clang on the jungle ground. Mia was still doubtful but she carefully laid her knife on the ground. "Alright, reveal yourself before I change my mind." She said with her fingertips still grazing the handle of her knife.

Caddock revealed himself with his hands up in surrender. "See? I won't hurt you. Don't worry." Mia was still watching him with narrowed eyes. "What do you want? Come to kill my allies once you've charmed me or something? It's not going to work this time Caddock." She approached him with her back straightened up to her full height. Caddock didn't even look at her with hard eyes rather soft and understanding eyes.

"I'm sorry about that Mia, I just really need your help. I won't kill them, I can't bring myself to kill Aquila most of all… She's too innocent." Mia looked over her shoulder and saw Aquila tucked up like a little ball in her sleep. She wasn't snoring but breathing heavily and had a smile on her face… Probably from a dream.

"What do you need my help for? What's your bargain?" she said this softly as to not wake up her allies. Caddock took a deep breath. "Please do anything you can to help Aquila to win. She deserves it." Mia's eyes widened. Caddock doesn't want to win? He's a freaking CAREER! He's not supposed to think like that! What has the world come to… Don't answer that…

"Just help her win. You would do Panem a favor." Then he took her hand and squeezed it. She looked at them and thanked the Gamemakers for making the arena a bit dark right now or Caddock would've seen her blush. Caddock smiled her way and waited for an answer on his request. Mia considered it for a moment and nodded. "Alright. I'll help." Caddoc smiled and pulled Mia into a hug. It was Mia's awkward cough that got Caddock off of her. He blushed as well coughed in his hand.

"I'll be watching sometimes. Just remember that. Thank you for helping." He walked over to his bush and gathered his things with Mia still standing shell shocked in the same spot her left her. He hitched his bag up his shoulder, gave Mia one last fleeting smile and climbed up a sturdy tree near their campsite.

Mia once again coughed awkwardly and scooted over to the entrance of the fort again. She wrapped her arms around herself and wished Caddock's arms were around her again. What? _Why are you thinking those things? Get a hold of yourself Mia! You can't get a stupid crush on a tribute, especially a career! You idiot. _She thumped her head once and rested it on the stict that propped up the fort.

Aquila shifted in her sleep and almost woke up but decided against it _Too early to wake up._ Then she let a small snore emit from her lips and lay down on her side. Facing away from Mia who was currently going through conflicting emotions in her head. But she can't think like that. No… Even stupid Caddock can't stop her from keeping a strong head. She has to protect Aquila.

She's not going to let a stupid crush get in the way.

* * *

Meanwhile, Finnick Odair was currently sitting with Peeta and Katniss in their observation room. Plutarch let Finnick stay with the two to help them and make sure they weren't going through nervous breakdowns watching the games. "Comfortable you two?" the green-eyed boy asked to the two mentors currently curled up next to each other. They both blushed and scooted away from each other nervously.

The older boy just laughed out loud. Katniss glared at him and he stopped immediately, Peeta chuckled. "You just got a Katniss Glare. Don't make her do it again or she'll light YOU on fire." Finnick just showed his tongue out to him in a very childlike manner. Peeta did the same and both Mentors burst out laughing. "Aww, Kitty Kat don't be such a killjoy!" said Finnick when Katniss wasn't laughing but a smile tugged on her lips at the boys' foolishness.

"Do you think Caddock could be part of the team? He seems genuinely sure that he wants Aquila to win… Well nobody will win but you get the point." Said Katniss as she split a roll with Peeta. Peeta shrugged and looked at Finnick wit questioning eyes. He pondered for a moment before saying "Maybe. I don't know, we have to ask Plutarch but he is currently in the game room. We can't just burst in there and ask 'Hey Plutarch! We've decided to not kill Caddock!' It's unreasonable. We'll give it time." He took a bowl of grapes from the table and started helping himself to the sweet fruits slowly.

Katniss just groaned internally and lied down on the couch putting her head on Peeta's lap, closing her eyes in thought. Peeta flushed a deep crimson and started stroking Katniss's hair receiving small noises of content. Finnick was wiggling his eyebrows at Peeta and made kissy faced towards him. Peeta just rolled his eyes and mouthed 'Shut Up.'

"Well, it won't be that long. Did you send the bread?" Finnick asked Peeta. Katniss moved and was now looking towards the computer screen searching for customary bread baskets. Peeta was secretly disappointed that Katniss wasn't on his lap anymore but stopped thinking that when Finnick was giving him kissy faces behind Katniss's back.

Katniss counted out loud to them to make sure she got the right amount of bread placed in the basket. "Only 7 days right?" she asked the boys ad they both nodded once. She hit the send button and a silver parachute falling down was seen on her computer screen indicating that it was currently being sent. "Now we just have to wait for Darya to count them." She plopped back down onto Peeta's lap and the latter silently said 'thank you thank you thank you!' in his head. Finnick yawned again and rolled his eyes at him.

_He's got the love bug. He's got it bad…_

* * *

Darya was currently sitting down on the ground in front of their fort. He got word just exactly 3 days ago that it would be seven days until the hovercrafts would take them. So far… only 3 died and that's a problem. The tributes are supposed to die and it was getting tiring just sitting here while everybody went water hunting.

He was twirling his spear in his hand and threw it far away. Suddenly, he heard one canon and he sat up immediately. He was hoping that he didn't kill Aquila or Pollux… They were the key part to the plan. Then he was pushing through leaves and bushes until he saw a girl lying on the ground with the spear in her stomach… One other boy was dead on the ground.

He moved closer and realized… The girl was Mia. _Shit! _He thought and ran over to her side. "Mia! Mia can you hear me!" he breathed through his tears. Said girl looked up and smiled. She took Darya's hand and said in his ear "Take care of Aquila, make sure she wins. You'll be doing Panem a favor." She said her voice going hoarse with every passing breath.

Darya tried to fight back tears. He nodded and suddenly heard footsteps heading towards him. He didn't have the heart to stand up and defend himself. Until he heard familiar cries of "Mia? Where are you?" She went by herself… with this boy. The boy was blond with brown eyes. He was strong and was thinner than Darya remembered… it was Caddock.

Mia followed Darya's eyes and smiled. "That's Caddock. He… Jumped in front of me when the spear was there. His heart took the full blow and it went straight through him and went to my stomach. He saved me… but he was too late." Darya was sobbing now. This was his fault. _All _his fault. If he didn't throw the sear with so much force, Mia wouldn't be here with the same spear through her stomach.

"I'm so sorry. I killed him and… I'm killing you right now and…" Mia shushed hum weakly and put her finger to her lips. "I will be in a better place. Just… protect Aquila, it was Caddock's last wish. I want it to be mine as well." Darya shook his head disbelieving why would she take the last wish of a career? "Why would you do that? Why ask for that… I could take care of your family…"

"They'll be fine. Protect…Aquila." She was almost gone. Darya was still crying into her outstretched hand. "I took his wish… because," She coughed and her grip was looser onto Darya's hand he just sobbed louder. Not caring if some other careers were to kill him right here. He had to be next to her. To make her feel like she still has people who care for her…

"Because I love him.." then her eyes closed and her breathing stopped. That was it. She's gone. Just 4 day ago they met and she was helpful in any way. She had a can do attitude and she was nice to everyone. She had a small temper with Pollux but she was still nice to him. Why must the good die young?

Right then and there, he promised to keep Aquila safe from anything… Even if he killed himself in the process. Pollux too. "Darya!" Aquila was already kneeling beside Mia with tears flowing down her porcelain cheeks. "She's…" Darya just sniffed loudly and nodded.

"She's gone… we can't take her back…"

~End of Chapter 8~

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**I feel so mean for doing that to Mia. But she had to die. Don't hate me please! Reviews would be nice… telling me how boring this chapter was. I'm sorry for disappointing you :( But tell me if it's okay…or bad…**


	9. Destination Horror

**Author's Notes: Hello! I'm back! Didn't expect me to come back again did 'ya? Thought I was just gonna leave you with a dead tribute now did 'ya? (I'm sounding like Cory now) Anyway, Here is the next chapter and I'm still sort of tired of the Drama at my house and I just came from my last survival skills class. Tomorrow will be Archery tournament… I'm super busy :/**

**Just enjoy the chapter :D If you like it :] And this will be the last Arena chapter *sigh* I have to bring them out already but this will have more action! Maybe… Depends on your definition of 'action'. I'm revealing some things here in a casual manner. It is Darya, he is straight to the point.**

**DISCLAIMER: Haven't done this in a while… But you know… I don't own the beauty and somewhat creepiness of the Hunger Games and the names used by **_**booksandblades**_

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**Chapter 9**

**Destination Horror**

_**Darya's POV**_

Alright, this is getting ridiculous. 4 days ago I got word that they were going to take us out of this Arena. Now they need 2 more days to get the hovercrafts ready? God, if I were really a 13 year old, I would so throw a tantrum right now. Ok, that's weird. Why would a 13 year old throw a tantrum? Unless you were completely snobby and from the Capitol. Not me. I'm from good 'ol District 13 and I'm not afraid to say it.

Anyway, I'm once again sitting here and guarding our fort with Toli. We decided on new schedules. Well, we won't be staying by them for so long since in 5 days, we'll get out of here and start training Pollux and Aquila for the rebellion. I – though failed miserably – tried to reason with them that two barely become teenagers can be of use in the rebellion.

But who am I to give suggestions? President Coin is too stubborn for her own good. I can see why Toli hates her guts.

"How much longer Darya until we get out of this joint?" asked Toli ripping apart a banana leaf. I roll my eyes at my fellow adult and question – once again – President Coin's intentions on this guy. He's really not the brightest star in the sky. He's certainly too kind to be intimidating. Just the fact that he looked 13? More like a 13 year old who had an enormous growth spurt.

"I told you for the millionth time Toli, 5 days. Why do you ask?" I say seriously getting restless of both Toli and this stupid plan. Toli just shrugged and said "Just trying to make conversation." he then proceeded destroying the banana leaf again. I roll my eyes for practically the 10th time and sigh "Your way of starting one is very amusing." His turn to roll his eyes but I don't really care.

We stayed in a very comfortable – well comfortable to me since he's not asking the same question over and over again – silence until he brought up the forbidden topic. "Do you think Caddock could've been useful for the… you know." Well, at least he's smart enough not to bring up the topic-that-must-not-be-named.

"I don't know. Maybe. But I'm still sort of reluctant about the current situation, so just drop it." I say calmly and start tracing patterns on the ground with the spear that I didn't use to kill my ally with. After that incident, I couldn't bear with myself to keep the damn weapon. Aquila almost had a friend like her and I just… Damn it, I can't even mention it. I guess these are the times that Toli points out how much of a softy I am.

Toli nodded surprisingly and just sat there looking at the sky. We stayed once again in a silence whose tension could be cut by a butter knife. The only thing that breaks the silence is the occasional rustle of leaves or gust of wind. Aquila and Pollux returned shortly after with nothing in their hands. That's strange; they usually bring at least a fish.

"Hey guys, nothing today?" Aquila just sat beside me and shook her head. An indication that she didn't want to talk about it Pollux decided that he talk since Aquila looks on the brink of tears. "We were surprised by some careers by the beach. They said they'll come for us one day, Aquila wasn't even able to kill because she was so scared for all of us." Aquila nodded to confirm and sniffed loudly.

The small girl beside me then laughed hollowly and smirked. "And Pictor said I had courage. I can't even kill…" she then went inside the fort to just sit. Yes, just sit there and space out. She's been getting pretty skilled with that already. Ever since Mia's death she just stopped being cheery. She was usually the optimistic one. Now she's an empty shell.

If only I could say that I know how she feels. Well, I don't. She came into the Arena determined to win and fight even her own allies to get back home to Primrose. Now, she looks so vulnerable and she's constantly darting her head side to side like a lost puppy. She seems lost. Now I can't even think about bringing her to District 13 after what the Capitol has done to her. But a little part of me also wants to crush the Capitol by her side and tell her everything is gonna be alright… Truth is, sometimes things are never going to be alright, at least not in a short space of time.

I try to make the conversation lighter since it'll only be 5 more days until we get out of here. That sounds so assuring in my mind right now. "We still have some food left in the crate. I'm guessing it'll last us 5 days." I hope it does. We've got tons of bread rolls, 2 small packs of jerky and a few bottles of water… we can last 5 days with that right? With 4 people eating?

"Yeah, I guess…" Then suddenly we heard a louder rustle of leaves. It's louder than the norm. So I jump up quickly readying my spear with Pollux by my side. Toli gets ready with his fists while Aquila loads her bow with a sharpened arrow. We stay there in silence until my District partner came out of the bush, close to death. I'm not really attached to Molly, what's she doing here?

"They're coming…" she said and she just dropped dead. Blood spilled from her open wounds as a canon was fired. Aquila stood there with her nose in the air and her ears twitching up every so often. Man, I wish I could do that. Then her eyes went wide and she suddenly said "Brace yourselves, the mutts are coming. Best idea to run!" she then bolted away from us as a – are my eyes deceiving me – creature with the head of a shark, the front legs of a tiger and the back legs of a…horse.

This has got to be the weirdest mutt ever. What is Plutarch thinking? He should've just left Lira do all the Mutt plans and drawings. This thing was plain weird. The _thing _was growling at us and it sounded like it has the vocal chords of that tiger. "Is it growling?" asked Toli who was now shaking slightly. "At least it's not talking." I say with my voice higher an octave.

"Should we stay put and let it sense that we're not here?" asked Pollux with his voice higher 2 octaves. I wouldn't be surprised if this boy peed himself. I rolled my eyes and was about to throw my spear until an arrow whizzed pass my right ear and landed on the mutt's knee. I whipped around and saw Aquila high on a rock a few feet away. She smirked at her allies and jumped down, prepared for the mutt to pounce.

And pounce it did. Right above our heads. Maybe there are some bird genetics in there as well. It pounced just a few feet away from Aquila's body and started to neigh like a horse and then growl like a tiger. This thing is officially creeping me out. Plutarch comes up with the weirdest ideas for mutts. I can't even talk about it out loud on how stupid yet terrifying it looks.

Aquila raised her arms up in an intimidating manner and said "Come at me bro!" and then she jumped aside as quickly as she could when the mutt pounced again. She stared at us and said pointedly "Well scaredy cats are you just going to stand there? Distract it while I get Mia's net ready!" she rolled her eyes and then I did the craziest thing "Hey shark-face!"

The mutt turned an ugly face to me and I felt a bit of the confidence I think I had slip away while Pollux and Toli scattered as well. "You're not so scary, tough guy! You're just a fish out of water!" I say and Aquila cried out "Seriously? Enough with the fish puns and just distract it with… leaves or something." She was obviously struggling with the net and I wanted to help her but the mutt kept me frozen in place.

"Hey you!" shouted Pollux and the mutt looked over in Pollux's direction and growled again. I went over and helped Aquila pry the net between the crate and Pollux's backpack. Mia made the net out of some sturdy leaves when she was still alive. She thought we could use it for fishing or catching tributes.

"Thanks." She muttered and she took off again and found higher ground effectively hiding herself on the rock near Toli. She shout-whispered something to Toli and he just smirked and nodded. He took a deep breath and yelled "Fish boy! Over here you big lump of fur!" the mutt – I still don't know what to call it – instead looked into Toli's direction with an evil gleam in its eyes.

"Come at me BRO!" he yelled copying Aquila's words and the animal couldn't be happier to oblige. It bounded closer and closer to Toli until he was only a few feet away. Toli jumped out of the way and the thing let out a small whimper before colliding its head against the rock behind him. Aquila threw the net over it and jumped down to slit its throat.

We all were panting after that experience. Hey, at least we're not crying over the death. In fact, we're glad it's dead. I hate mutts and I've considered yelling into the heavens about 'NO MORE MUTTS PLUTARCH' but decided against it. I shouldn't get in trouble before we left. He'll probably kill me and we don't want that. I've been training for the rebellion since I was 10! They need me!

Suddenly we heard footsteps from afar and a flaming spear went between me and Pollux. The spear landed on the mutt's dead body and there was a note attached to it. I went over and took the note and unfolded it. The note said:

_Get ready, we're coming for you._

Oh shit… I did not see this coming. Then I heard distant cries of "GET THEM!" and more shouts of war. They're a bit too melodramatic when it comes to killing. Especially the careers from District 1 since they live to be melodramatic.

Aquila immediately took out a long knife from her jacket and charged. Well, it's now or never. We live to die here in Panem and I am NOT dying tonight. I take out the spear from the body and charge after the careers behind Aquila. I managed to kill Sparkle from District 1. God, I always hated him I thought when the canon boomed across the arena. The careers weren't just from 1 and 2 anymore. They even teamed up with the ones from 7 and 9. And they are not a pretty bunch.

I was spear-sword fighting with the boy from 7 and he is desperately trying to keep up. The girl from 9 came up behind Toli and I screamed out to him to look behind him. He quickly punched her straight in the jaw and put a knife to her heart. One more canon blasted and I was starting to get exhausted entertaining this guy's thoughts that he's winning so I quickly pierced my spear through his heart and the canon boomed and he was dead.

Aquila was currently fighting side by side with Pollux against – for Aquila – Shimmer from District 1 and – for Pollux – the boy from 9. They were sweating hard while Toli was doing hand to hand combat with the girl from 7. I went over to help Aquila since Shimmer was close to slitting her throat. "Scared now District 12? Ready to be on my kill list?" she said with mirth and went to stab Aquila.

I quickly grabbed her wrist and twisted it with all the might I could muster. I heard a satisfying crack of her wrist and she cried out in pain. "How does that feel District 1? You finally on the receiving end of pain!" Then I slammed her body down on the floor with so much force, it knocked the wind out of her. She was breathing but it came out choppy and unsure.

Aquila then stood up with her hand clasping her bow and the other loading it with an arrow. I thought she was going to shoot Shimmer but instead, she shot the boy from nine and quickly loaded the bow again to shoot the girl from 7. She was breathing deeply and her voice was raspy as she spoke.

"You're pathetic" she said to Shimmer before shooting her back. I was guessing it was where the heart was since a canon boomed and we were in the debris of a post-battle. Aquila's breathing became calmer and Toli was nursing a bloody lip. I ripped off a part of my shirt and tossed it to Toli. Pollux was coughing bits of blood but stopped after 2 minutes. "That's was refreshing." Said Pollux and he went over and dragged Shimmer's body to the boy from 7 and just dragged the dead bodies in one pile.

I sat down and got a massive headache. So this is how a battle feels like. I can't even imagine what a war would feel like. If I get a headache after this, then I will probably get a migraine when we do the rebellion. And suddenly, I feel like puking but refrain from doing it before I start gagging out my insides.

I was about to sit up when a silver parachute went into my line of vision and it landed onto my lap. I wonder if it's medicine for my headache and open it quickly. "What is it?" asked Toli knowing full well that it has to be some sort of news from the mentors that are helping the rebellion.

I see a piece of bread and a note taped to it:

_Tonight. At the beach. 12 midnight._

Great. Coin can't seem to make up her damn mind. The hovercrafts will arrive at 12 midnight. She knows that's when everybody will be well asleep except for our mentors who are probably getting ready to go in the hovercrafts right now. How was I supposed to distract his allies and all of Panem who have no clue about the rebellion? I never hated Coin more than ever right now…

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"12 midnight huh? They'll definitely be freaked when they find out that they're not in the arena anymore." Said Toli quietly so not to wake up our charges who were sleeping soundly. It's almost midnight.

I just shrug and lie back down. "Haymitch will explain… Here they come." I point up and I see the tell tale sign of the hovercraft in invisibility. "Now quietly. We don't want them to be suspicious. Press your belt three times." Toli did as he was told and did the same with the two teenagers. They were surprisingly heavy sleepers.

We were up in the hovercraft in 10 minutes because we had to make sure no-one was watching and Aquila and Pollux were sent to the changing room so they could be changed to pajamas. They are so going to be freaked out when they found out where they are…

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_**Katniss's POV**_

Ok… That was unexpected. I never thought we would get n the hovercraft early but we've been feeding them false info about the hovercrafts since day one. Figures that they thought they should do it early. I thought honesty was going to be needed in this thing. I guess not…

"Hey Katniss, you want to wake up Aquila and Pollux?" asks Peeta entering my chamber in the hovercraft. "They're here already? Alright." I let Peeta lead me to the changing room and see Aquila and Pollux still sleeping soundly except in red shirts and dark blue pajama pants.

They look so sleepy and peaceful. I didn't want to wake them up and tell them their lives will take an unexpected twist. I didn't want to disturb their beautiful dreams. I didn't want to bring them back to a world thirsty for blood and vengeance. I wanted to keep them safe and I didn't think Peeta would approve of that.

"I'll wake them up. We'll both explain the plan as simple as possible and reserve the answers for their questions in District 13." He squeezes my hand and I smile at our interlocked fingers. It's weird how they look like they fit perfectly together. Truly creeping me out.

Peeta went over next to Aquila and shook her shoulder gently. "Aquila. Pollux. Wake up." Both of my tributes wake up with fluttering eyelashes. Aquila sat up immediately contemplating their surroundings. Pollux did the same and realized that he was smelling clean and wearing regular pajamas. Aquila finally spotted us and her eyes widened.

"Peeta? Katniss?" I smiled and she immediately became teary eyed and scooted quickly over to hug me tightly. "God, that was scary in there." She sobbed onto my shoulder and I smoothed her hair and soothed her with a calm humming voice. "Shhh. It's alright. You're safe here, for now." I say and Pollux just looks confused.

"Why are we here? Why aren't we in the arena?" he asked slightly flustered about the fact that somebody changed him. Peeta replied "You're in a hovercraft to District 13." Pollux's eyes widened as well and he shook his head disbelieving. "What? But District 13 was obliviated." Peeta shook his slowly and put a hand on Pollux's shoulder.

"We can't be going there Peeta…." But I just shushed him as well and Peeta nodded his head. "We're going to District 13 because we heard that District 12 has just been bombed." Aquila heard this and sobbed harder. My soft reassurances were not working. It usually worked when Peeta does it. Aquila looked up with red-rimmed eyes and stuttered "I-Is Prim o-o-okay?" I nodded and saw slight relief wash over the face of the younger girl in front of me. I hated seeing her like this, she's still in pain.

Peeta awkwardly coughed and said after an uncomfortable silence "There's one more thing." Then both Aquila and Pollux looked at both of us in a curious manner with their heads tilted. I took a deep breath and said after a few minutes:

"We're training you for the rebellion."

~End of Chapter 9~

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**Crappy ending… I know. But a review would be nice? (That's more of a pleading question than a statement)**


	10. Confusion

**Author's Notes: I'M BACK FROM THE DEAD! Here is a short and weird chapter of TST. I'm sorry for the long wait and I'm **_**sure **_**the chapter after this will be better. MUCH BETTER. To keep you guys from killing me, here's a cake from Peeta *hands it to you sheepishly* Don't worry, It's chocolate!**

**Disclaimer: *Looks around* I'm not sitting in a private mansion in the middle of London playing golf with Darren Criss so… I don't own the Hunger Games. That's really disappointing.**

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**Chapter 10**

**Confusion**

_**(Aquila's POV)**_

_I watched with tear filled eyes as my parents struggled in mid-air. Gasping for air, my father took the shoulders of the nearest peacekeeper and pointed a shaking finger in his face. "Never lay a finger on my daughter ever again." The peacekeeper had the nerve to laugh. My fists clenched and I started pounding on the glass wall that separated me from my parents._

"_No promises." said the peacekeeper in a sing song voice. His voice is more of irritation than downright annoying. Andrew's head rolled under their feet which are slowly starting to twitch and then…_

_Their bodies stopped moving ad I screamed as loud as I can. My eyes were suddenly plunged into darkness. _

_**Did you think your children will be children forever?**_

_**She's gone**_

_**You don't love me Aquila**_

_They're faces flashed before me. My parents, Mia, Andrew and even Pictor's faces looked so disappointed. "You're useless Aquila." I cried even harder and tried to reach out to them when Katniss and Peeta suddenly towered above me. They looked down on me in disgust and shook their heads._

"_She's worthless. Why did we even try to help her?"_

"_I don't know. What has gotten over us?" _

"_She is nothing to me." Katniss glared at me with a fire of burning hatred. "Let's leave her." Peeta nodded and Katniss kicked my stomach causing me to fall on the floor clutching my stomach in a fetal position._

"_I-I'm wortheless…"_

"_Aquila,"_

I woke up with a start and I felt the sweat going down my face in turrets. I looked around wildly and my speeding heart relaxed when I realized that yes, I was in a dark room. But this dark room is familiar. This dark place is my sleeping quarters in District 13. Quadrant 12, Section T, Room 7.

It consisted of gray walls, a black bed and a small lamp giving the room a slight orange glow. "J-Just a dream." I tried to reassure myself. Although, part of that dream seemed so real. My parent's death and the reminder of Andrew's decapitation, it just seemed so real that I feel as though my head might explode from all these mixed feelings.

"It's not real. You're alive. You escaped the Hunger Games. You're in District 13 training for a rebellion. You're safe." I sighed and drew my knees under my chin, letting a single tear fall from my green eyes. "At least for now." I said dejectedly with a slight shimmer of hope in my voice.

"_She doesn't seem so happy to be here." _My head snapped up and I looked towards the door. I know that voice anywhere. I know those footsteps. I know that familiar shuffle of boots on the hard wood floor. I stood up carefully and pressed my ear against the door of my room and closed my eyes to concentrate fully on the voices.

"…_district 13 sucks_." I snorted inwardly as I heard Katniss insult District 13 like one of the countless times before. I heard Peeta's all too familiar sigh and I imagined him rubbing his face tiredly. "_At least both of them are safe. They are very essential to the plan." _I gritted my teeth furiously when I heard the word _plan._

They told me of their plan of bringing me and Pollux here – mere thirteen year olds – to train for the other plan of a rising rebellion. So many people never told me anything. Toli, Darya and even Plutarch who seemed to be in on this stupid plan as well. I was apparently an important aspect of the plan but they refuse to tell me why.

"…_Coin would be furious when she realizes that we didn't wake her up again." _Curses. I was too absorbed in my thoughts that I didn't hear the rest of their conversation. Stupid Aquila, stop getting distracted. I hurriedly jumped unto my bed and put myself in a position to make them think that I was still asleep.

I heard the door's hinges creek slightly and I lay there as still as a statue. I heard Katniss sigh heavily as the bed's mattress dipped beside me. I felt Peeta's hands stroke my hair in soothing patterns and it had a calming effect on me just like his words. "She just looks so innocent. Why does she have to be the mini?" Mini? Mini what? Mini target for the bombs? Mini _what? _

The blankets moved slightly and I felt Katniss sit beside Peeta. She rubbed my back in circles and it also had a calming effect on me. "I just wish it wasn't her Peeta. I just want her to be safe."

"She is safe…"

"For now. But what happens when we start fighting in the war? What if she _does_ get killed? Peeta, she's not in the Hunger Games anymore. She's in a bigger game where she literally has no other choice but to fight for her life not only because she was picked through a piece of paper – or volunteered – she will be threatened as heavily as me. She will be standing on her toes the whole time. She will be in _grave _danger. I-I don't want that for her. It's too much for her to handle."

It took all my willpower to keep myself from crying at her confession. She cares about me. My dreams – not like I believed them – were wrong and Katniss and Peeta don't think I'm worthless. They actually treat me like I'm their own. It helps my steadily beating heart.

"Let's just hope for that Katniss. She won't die… I really have a feeling that she won't." I could imagine Katniss's eyes staring at me and I had to do _something _to break the tension. I stirred slightly and sat up slowly. Thank my days that I'm a good actor. I rubbed my eyes tiredly with my knuckles and yawned.

"My neck hurts," I said softly and I looked up to meet Katniss and Peeta's concerned yet happy eyes. "Hey guys, when did you get in here?" I asked with a small accent. Ever since I arrived at District 13, I met a British runaway named Leo. He was very fascinating. He told me of the stories from his home. But the cruelty of his parents. He finally snapped and ran away to America, at least that's what he thought the name was.

He was surprised to see that America changed into Panem. He joined the rebel forces after he found out what Snow was doing to the children of Panem. I've been around him for so much, that I have developed a small accent and I talk with it no matter how hard I try to subside it.

"Just a while ago." Said Peeta ruffling my hair. "Now, you need to get up and…" I heard a knock on the door and I immediately brightened up to see Gale standing there. Gale has been nice to me when we met in the woods. He said I reminded him of a mini Katniss…

"Is the bird ready to come out of her nest? Oh and… he took out a small box with a bow on it and smiled. I looked at it in confusion and then realized what it was. Today is April 10th. My fourteenth birthday.

"Ahem Ahem." My eyes shifted to none other than Plutarch Heavensbee in a red shirt and dark blue jeans. His pyjamas, I presume. He usually changes into something more sophisticated than that. "Happy Birthday Ms. Flamsteed. I hope you've slept well?" I resist the urge to roll my eyes. Ever since I got here, I've been sleeping restlessly and waking up from nightmares. He should know by now. A whole year has passed.

"Yes. And we've discussed this Plutarch, you don't need to be so formal with me. Call me Aquila." I said with a strained smile. He nodded with no expression and he walked in with Gale awkwardly entering after him. "Since it is your birthday Ms… Aquila," he scrunched his nose slightly at calling me by my first name. "I am proud to present to you a gift from all of District 13. We hope this will be to your preference."

He gave me a big box with green wrapping paper (I'm not sure how he was able to hide that from Me.) with a sincere smile and I smiled back kindly. At least this training for the rebellion thing will be more bearable. I took the box and turned it around carefully. I shook it and listened to the weird noises coming from inside.

"What is it?" Plutrach chuckled and he made an _open it _gesture with his hand. I carefully unwrapped it and took off the lid. My eyes went over a medium sized metal slate. I raised my eyebrow at this and I looked at Plutarch in confusion.

"I have an instruction manual inside. Happy Birthday once again." He patted my head like a dog and left the room nodding at all of us. "Well, needless to say, I hope my present isn't as… confusing as Mr. Bumblebee." Surprisingly, Peeta was the one who laughed and Katniss smiled fondly.

I reached out my hands to him like a little child and he promptly gave me the present. I took the lid off and smiled when I saw the shining dragon inside. I once told Gale that I wish we had Dragons so that we could burn the Capitol to the ground. Dragons are these mythical creatures that breathe fire and are at least 25 feet long.

"I always knew that you had a thing for flying stuff." Gale ruffled my hair and left the room. Peeta smacked his forehead after that. "I totally forgot! Gale said flying things! We're going to test the hovercrafts today, how could I be so stupid?" Katniss laughed and Peeta glared at her. "Okay, sorry. And… aren't people ages 16 and up the only ones allowed to go?" she asked with a raised brow.

"That's means I won't go?" I asked pouting. They both smiled sympathetically and hugged me. "It will be fine. I'll send Prim over later." They both waved at me and left me on my bed.

Plutarch giving me a birthday present. Me forgetting that it's my birthday. The conversation of Peeta and Katniss…

Everything is so confusing.

Happy Birthday to me.

~End of Chapter 2~

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**I know, short chapter. I'll make it up to you guys! I KNOW IT'S POORLY WRITTEN BUT AT LEAST I UPDATED!**


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